Delap will leave Ipswich at the end of the season, when a clause in his contract enabling him to move for £30m in the event of the Suffolk club being relegated formally becomes active.
The 22-year-old has been given permission to begin discussing his future plans with interested parties and intends to spend the next week or so assessing his options.
Newcastle are one of those interested parties, although within the club’s recruitment team there is an acknowledgment that it will almost certainly be difficult to persuade Delap to commit to the Magpies.
The striker is already understood to have held an initial round of talks with senior figures at Manchester United, who are keen to sign him as part of what looks set to be a major summer overhaul at Old Trafford.
Manchester United officials are closing in on a £60m deal for Wolves’ Matheus Cunha, but regardless of what happens in this evening’s Europa League final against Tottenham, which will determine who qualifies for next season’s Champions League, the finances are in place to enable the Red Devils to sign both Cunha and Delap this summer.
Crucially, Ruben Amorim envisages playing the two forwards together next season, with Cunha in a more withdrawn position, with the Portuguese boss understood to be playing a leading role in the courting of Delap.
Chelsea are also known to be extremely interested in a Delap deal, with the recruitment of a new centre-forward a key priority at Stamford Bridge this summer.
Chelsea’s transfer dealings are, to some extent, dependent on whether they qualify for the Champions League, with their fate set to be decided when they meet Notttingham Forest in their final Premier League game on Sunday afternoon.
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Enzo Maresca’s side are also involved in next week’s UEFA Conference League final against Real Betis and are set to crank up their transfer activity once they have completed their domestic campaign.
Ideally, they would like to take advantage of the additional transfer window that has been created at the start of next month ahead of their involvement in the FIFA Club World Cup.
Chelsea are hoping the appeal of playing in the tournament, which will see them take on Leon, Flamengo and ES Tunis in the group stage, will enhance their chances of landing Delap.
Newcastle are hoping they will be in a position to offer Champions League football by the end of the weekend – the Magpies will be guaranteed a top-five finish if they beat Everton at St James’ in their final game – and are confident they can match whatever financial packages are placed in front of Delap from elsewhere.
However, while Manchester United and Chelsea both intend to make Delap their frontline striker next season, Newcastle are looking for a player who can either complement or provide competition for Alexander Isak.
Despite ongoing interest from Arsenal and Liverpool, the Magpies are adamant that Isak will not be moving this summer, but throughout his St James’ Park tenure, Eddie Howe has displayed a strong preference for playing with only one central striker.
While European involvement next season will increase Newcastle’s workload, and create more opportunities for game time in the central third, Delap has already indicated that he would be reluctant to join a club where his route to the first team would potentially be blocked.
No matter what Newcastle can offer as an alternative attraction, it is hard to see how they can overcome the potential selection issue.
The Magpies’ attacking situation will become clearer once Callum Wilson’s future is resolved at the end of the season. Wilson is due to become a free agent next month, but Howe has previously indicated that he would like to see the 33-year-old remain on Newcastle’s books.