Manchester United not only suffered an embarrassing 1-4 defeat at the hands of Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Sunday but also lost in-form Joshua Zirkzee to what seemed like a hamstring injury.
After the disastrous display put in by Rasmus Hojlund against Olympique Lyonnais in the Europa League quarter-final first leg tie, Ruben Amorim rightly decided to drop the Dane in favour of starting the Dutchman.
He showed moments of brilliance but eventually pulled up in the second half with the head coach confirming after the game that he will miss the second leg against the French side.
The Red Devils have struggled for goals all throughout the season and their Danish No 9 has been poor, managing only three Premier League goals all season.
Striker hunt
As a result, the Portuguese tactician wants him gone in the summer with INEOS even open to a loan exit knowing that currently they are unlikely to recoup the fee they paid to bring him to Old Trafford.
Juventus are interested while Napoli are also keen and Amorim wants a ruthless finisher to replace the Denmark international with Viktor Gyokeres and Victor Osimhen among his top choices.
But obviously, owing to the club’s financial condition, the co-owners might not be in a position to pay outrageous fees especially if United fail to qualify for the Champions League.
Which is why Liam Delap of Ipswich Town had emerged as the perfect alternative with the ex-Manchester City starlet impressing despite a difficult season for the Tractor Boys.
Kieran McKenna’s men look odds on to get relegated, which would make United’s bid to sign him even easier but as per The Daily Star, the 22-year-old has other ideas.
He wants a move to a club in the Champions League and is prepared to snub the Red Devils to earn a move to one of the London clubs — Chelsea or Arsenal.
This is because he wants to earn a place in England’s World Cup squad and the only way for that to happen is if he plays in the top competitions.
Delap wants London move
“Liam Delap could snub a summer move to Manchester United in a huge blow to the Premier League strugglers. Amorim turned to Delap after being told by co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe that United couldn’t afford the £80m asking price for Sporting’s Viktor Gyokeres.
“But despite making it clear to Delap that United want him, the 22-year-old is said to be having doubts about joining the fallen giants. It’s understood Delap wants to join a club playing in Europe, with Chelsea or Arsenal being his preferred destination.
“Delap is desperate to be part of England’s 2026 World Cup squad, and wants to be performing for a club operating at the highest level.”
The Ipswich striker has 12 goals and two assists this season and has a release clause worth £30 million in his contract. It will be interesting to see how United react to this latest update.
Hopefully, Europa League glory is on its way, which would make things much easier for INEOS but The Peoples Person has already relayed that Jean-Philippe Mateta of Crystal Palace has been lined up in case things go south.
Feature image Richard Pelham via Getty Images
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
