Manchester United have started showing interest in a Chelsea forward in what would be a divisive move as a knock-on effect of the Blues beating them to Liam Delap, a sensational report has claimed.
After suffering relegation with Ipswich Town, Delap became hot property for Premier League clubs. He was on the shortlists of Manchester United, Newcastle United, Everton and more, but in the end Chelsea have convinced him to stay down south after triggering his £30m release clause.
Delap is expected to take a medical with Chelsea on Monday, which will force his other admirers to start looking for alternatives.
Man Utd were optimistic of signing the former Manchester City academy graduate if they won the Europa League, but their loss to Tottenham Hotspur in the final – ruling them out of any European competition next season – has been off-putting.
United will now have to look elsewhere for a striker after being disappointed by Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee this season. Now, a surprise report claims they could seek revenge on Chelsea by taking one of their own strikers.
According to Football Transfers, United have ‘made an approach’ for Nicolas Jackson, who would fall down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge once Delap arrives.
Despite that implying United would be getting the inferior option, technical director Jason Wilcox reportedly believes Jackson is an option who can help stretch defences with his athleticism and would fit in well ahead of Matheus Cunha, who’s set to arrive at Old Trafford from Wolves.
Jackson would be an alternative to some of United’s more ambitious targets, such as Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres.
However, that doesn’t necessarily mean the 23-year-old would come cheap…
Nicolas Jackson: Chelsea transfer stance revealed
Chelsea might be ready to relegate Jackson down their pecking order, but they still believe in his potential as well.
Back in September, he extended his already lengthy contract for another two years, meaning he’s now tied down until 2033. Along with teammate Cole Palmer (2033) and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (2034), it’s one of the longest contracts in the Premier League.
Football Transfers says Chelsea are ‘reluctant’ to sell Jackson, who was among their scorers in the Conference League final win over Real Betis – his 30th goal in 78 games for the club.
With that in mind, there’s no mention of an asking price for the Senegal international, who joined Chelsea from Villarreal in 2023.
Besides, TEAMtalk has learned that the likely alternative United will turn to is Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Palace, who have European football on offer next season, may not be easy to convince and would hold out for more than £50m.
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Every striker linked with Man Utd
We’ve been tracking all the Man Utd transfer rumours about new strikers in recent months and it’s fair to say there are a lot who could be on their radar.
Here’s a quick summary of all the strikers linked with Man Utd – some being more likely than others.
Deep breath, then take your pick…
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
Alexander Isak (Newcastle United)
Nicolas Jackson (Chelsea)
Jean-Philippe Mateta (Crystal Palace)
Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen)
Jonathan Burkardt (Mainz)
Hugo Ekitike (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
Benjamin Sesko (RB Leipzig)
Patrik Schick (Bayer Leverkusen)
Moise Kean (Fiorentina)
Lorenzo Lucca (Udinese)
Victor Osimhen (Napoli)
Mateo Retegui (Atalanta)
El Bilal Toure (Atalanta)
Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)
Jonathan David (Lille)
Enzo Kana-Biyik (Le Havre)
Randal Kolo Muani (Paris Saint-Germain)
Goncalo Ramos (Paris Saint-Germain)
Samu Aghehowa (Porto)
Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid)
Brian Brobbey (Ajax)
Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting CP)