Amorim needs to add a goalscorer to his squad
Amorim needs to add a goalscorer to his squad
Jadon Sancho won't play for Manchester United again but the club still need to find a way to ship him out of Old Trafford on a permanent basis.
The former Borussia Dortmund man was expected to make his temporary switch to Chelsea permanent this summer but the Stamford Bridge outfit have pulled out of the agreed £25million deal.
It leaves United in a tricky position, saddled with a player who won't play for them again and the club not exactly inundated with calls from potential suitors.
While Chelsea's U-turn on Sancho has added another task to an already extensive list in the market for United this summer, the London club may well have done United a massive favour with one of their other transfer decisions.
Ruben Amorim is desperate to add a goalscorer to his squad this summer. Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee only mustered seven league goals between them last season as United managed just 44 goals in the Premier League. Their blunt attack was a massive contributing factor to a dire season.
Looking at potential when searching for a forward to lead the line at a club of United's stature clearly isn't working, making their pursuit of former Manchester City forward Liam Delap particularly concerning.
Delap enjoyed a very encouraging first season in the Premier League, scoring 12 goals in a poor Ipswich Town team.
However, when you consider he is just four days Hojlund's junior and the Dane himself managed to hit nine goals in Serie A in the season prior to his move to United in 2023, their records and profiles aren't dissimilar.
Despite United looking set to trigger the £30m release clause in Delap's Ipswich contract, Chelsea swooped for the 22-year-old and completed a deal.
Even if he goes on to thrive at Chelsea, United are in a far worse position than the fourth-best team in last season's Premier League who also lifted the Europa Conference League trophy, and so there would still be no guarantees it would have worked out had he moved to Old Trafford.
Chelsea's Sancho snub isn't good news for United but their move for Delap might be.
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