Liam Delap: From Championship star to England’s classic No 9 of the future

Liam Delap: From Championship star to England’s classic No 9 of the future
Liam Delap: From Championship star to England’s classic No 9 of the future

New Delhi: Liam Delap arrived at Portman Road with Hull in late 2023 and started on the right flank and if you consider his current season with the Tractor Boys, he has played a major role as a number nine, being their top scorer so far. At Hull, he attempted to use his speed to avoid the offside trap, get in behind, and create opportunities for Aaron Connolly, but he was largely unsuccessful in both of these attempts. Hull was defeated 3-0.

One of the most improbable underdog stories in recent months has been Delap for Ipswich’s blossoming under McKenna. This was just another young, talented forward in the age group whose career seemed to be veering toward frustration until recently. It was just another piece of floating big-club garbage attempting to pick up whatever scraps were left on the table. Moving up the ranks at Manchester City, Delap had shown his capabilities earlier, with glimpses of good loan performances but there were concerns that he might just end up like any other failed top prodigy in the past.

However, that isn’t the case with the English forward. After Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins, Delap is the third-highest-scoring Englishman in the Premier League this season with eight goals in a failing team. Soon, there will be discussions about international honors. An impending large shift is being discussed. The intensity of the Delap fervor, however, is also largely a result of how unlikely his profile has become in the current game—a tale of diminishing possibilities, outdated skill sets, and growing systemization. Delap is, in a way, the one who got away with it.

A natural number nine, forced to play as a winger

Delap takes on Manchester City, the team that raised and cultivated him for five years, tonight. The team where Delap smashed numerous records at the junior and development levels, their first team’s mastermind Pep Guardiola calls him “the type of striker we don’t have, a killer, a typical British striker, an incredible finisher.”

He played 170 minutes of senior football throughout those five years, 90 of which were in the League Cup. Between loan stints, he would practice in the academy building, park his car in the staff places, and be away from the first team—at the world’s greatest football club, but on the periphery, clinging to this reality.

This was hardly a case of talent. Delap grew up quickly and was a formidable junior football player with unrestrained aggression, amazing speed, and an unfailing eye for goal. Opportunity was the problem in a game that was becoming more and more stratified. Nowadays, the majority of football teams at all levels only use one striker. Coaches frequently completely do away with the conventional target man. Generally speaking, this game is designed to be played in a way that Delap is not. There are very few employment openings in this field, yet there are many applications.

Delap ended up playing on the right wing for Hull last season in this manner. Loan stints with Preston and Stoke had failed. However, Delap made the most of a young and developing team led by Liam Rosenior. He buffeted and barrelled. When the opportunity arose, he took it. In training, he put in a lot of labor and endured hardships. Hull most likely would have qualified for the playoffs if he hadn’t been sidelined for a pivotal three months in the spring.

Ipswich identified his natural position

He was strengthening his body and getting better at the back-to-goal game, which involves nudges, bunts, and guarding the ball under extreme pressure. McKenna recalls being shocked by Delap’s physical growth since he last saw him, how much he enjoyed interacting with defenders, and how well he fit his new vision for Ipswich, a team that wouldn’t have the luxury of packing the box with players like they did in the Championship and would need a more conventional, hold-up center-forward. Delap signed a £20 million summer contract with Ipswich.

Standing at the height of 6’1, he can cause havoc in the opposition boxes. However, despite that frame, heading has been one of his problems but as time passes, it would certainly improve. Last season in the Championship, Ipswich managed to share the goals, but this season, Delap has scored eight of the team’s twenty goals alongside two assists to his name. He utilises his unbelievable speed and an eye for goal to his best use, and this has been one of his main strengths this season which has been identified by Ipswich.

A future number nine for England?

It seems like a massive possibility that he might get called up for the England squad, and we can see that happening sooner than ever. The man assigned with the task for being England’s number nine is undoubtedly Harry Kane, followed by Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke. However, their ages are 31, 29, and 27 years old, respectively, which might open the chance for Delap to get into the squad much quicker. This season, no other English center-forward under 25 has scored more than two goals in the Premier League.

Josh Windass, age 31, Josh Brownhill, age 29, and Callum Lang, age 26, are the top-scoring Englishmen in the Championship. This certainly gives Delap the edge over others and to be fair, playing in the most physical and difficult league in the world, and scoring eight times for a relegatiin threatened side is something that is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Maybe Will Lankshear at Tottenham (19) or Ethan Wheatley at Manchester United (18) persevere, overcome the odds, get the perfect opportunities at the appropriate age, keep in shape, and eventually succeed in that race. A winger like Anthony Gordon or an offensive midfielder like Morgan Rogers might be the next great English striker. Maybe it’s a person we haven’t yet encountered. But for the time being, Delap is unique in a number of respects. Despite the fact that the ball is typically not at his feet, the player has the world at his feet. An old-school forward who, in some way, also indicates our direction.

 Old school English strikers are hard to find these days, but Liam Delap’s playing style and performances for Ipswich have certainly suggested that he can be the best example of a classic number nine. How did the future England’s number nine get here?  Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today