Troy Deeney reckons Chelsea are losing their battle to sign Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap in the summer amid interest from Man Utd.
Delap left Man City in the summer transfer window and signed for the Tractor Boys in a deal worth around £20m.
The 22-year-old has hit the ground running in the Premier League with 12 goals and two assists in 30 appearances, while the centre-forward is now attracting interest from a number of English clubs.
A report earlier this month insisted that Chelsea are ‘firm favourites’ to land Delap from Ipswich, who are very likely to be relegated, in the summer transfer window.
It was claimed that Delap has ‘held talks’ with ‘nearly half of the Premier League’ this year as he’s likely to have his pick of clubs ahead of the summer.
But former Watford striker Deeney reckons it’s “nailed on” that the England Under-21 international will swap Ipswich for Man Utd in the summer.
Deeney said on talkSPORT: “He has to play [to get into England squad] right?
“So his next step, if I was advising him, would be to go where you would play.
“Man United, it’s nailed on. If he went to Man United, he’d start every week. He’d instantly make them better.”
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When asked about Delap’s progression this season, Deeney added: “He can be whatever he wants – he has everything. I think, at the moment, my biggest concern is his temperament, he gets caught up in trying to prove his physicality.
“I remember watching him up against Everton earlier on in the season and (James) Tarkowski gave him a little bit and the rest of the game he was out of it because he just wanted to give it back. That’s a bit of immaturity but that will change as he grows.”
Man Utd are desperate to sign a new striker in the summer after both Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee have flopped in the Premier League this term.
Delap said last month that he is trying to ignore the “noise” surrounding his future as he looks to finish the season on a high.
The Ipswich striker said: “I’m so happy here, I’m enjoying it so much here. I just look forward to playing football. I take every game as it comes and focus on the next.
“It [media speculation] is something that I try and stay away from. People around me have told me to stay away from it, it’s something that I’m very good at in focusing on what I want to do. That’s playing football here.
“I’m really enjoying my time here and I enjoy playing every week. That’s the most important thing. We know, as players and people, that there is noise. If we have a bad game and people are slating us for not performing or getting the right results, we stay focused on ourselves and what we have to achieve.”
