Manchester United and Chelsea are set for a collision course as the Premier League rivals compete for the same attacking targets this summer.
Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, 22, has emerged as the “first-choice” option for United due to a £30 million relegation clause in his contract at Portman Road.
The England U-21 international has scored 12 goals in the Premier League this season – an impressive return for a side who only scored 36 in total. The senior striking partnership at Old Trafford of Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee combined for just seven, by comparison.
Delap travelled to Manchester last week to hold “face-to-face talks” with the club’s executive branch over a transfer this summer. But the Red Devils are not alone in their pursuit of the 22-year-old striker.
Delap has also met with Chelsea, Newcastle United, and Everton as he carefully considers his next career move, with the Blues thought to be at the front of the queue with United.
However, the fact that Ruben Amorim’s side will not play in Europe next season after the 1-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final in Bilbao may have given Chelsea the edge over their Mancunian rivals. Chelsea confirmed their entry into next season’s Champions League with a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest on the final day of the Premier League season.
However, United remain in the hunt for Delap and could be set to receive an unlikely boost as Chelsea consider an approach for another long-term target at Old Trafford.
The Athletic reveals Chelsea are “interested in Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike” with the Blues aiming to “conclude early summer transfer business as quickly as possible.”
The 22-year-old forward, linked with United earlier in the season, has enjoyed a stellar campaign in Germany, scoring 22 goals and providing 12 assists in 48 appearances. He scored the same number last year.
Bundesliga expert Sebastian Stafford-Bloor describes Ekitike as “a player evolving into a complete forward” who is “as talented as there is in German football” at present. He is also a self-professed boyhood United fan.
While the French U-21 star still has considerable scope for improvement, particularly in terms of efficiency and decision-making, his prototype as a quintessential modern forward makes him one of the most intriguing prospects in European football.
Frankfurt value their starlet at “€100million (£83.9m; $114m), albeit with a negotiable payment structure,” according to The Athletic. This price puts him beyond the reach of United but within the grasp of Chelsea, whose combination of European football and financial dark arts means they have a considerable war chest this summer.
The Athletic reveals the London club remain interested in Delap, as well as Benjamin Sesko – another target at Old Trafford: “Chelsea’s priority this summer is to sign a striker and a right-footed winger, with Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko among the forwards they are also considering.”
But if Chelsea were to progress their interest in Ekitike, it would mean United miss out on a long-term target while simultaneously being elevated to the front of the queue for a different one – Liam Delap. Swings and roundabouts hey?
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
