Manchester United's search for a striker this summer will almost certainly begin in Lisbon, which is where Ruben Amorim will hope it ends. Viktor Gyokeres proved a perfect fit for Amorim's system at Sporting and with a summer departure almost certain, he will hope to be reunited with the Swede.
Gyokeres has plundered 77 goals in 85 games for Sporting and the 26-year-old looks primed to follow Amorim to the top tier this summer. With United in the market for a striker and suggestions he will be available for perhaps as little as £61million, it is a pursuit that makes perfect sense.
United might not have the chase for such a prolific goalscorer all their own way, however. With Champions League football unlikely to be on offer, any competition for his signature could complicate matters.
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Victor Osimhen is an alternative target. The Nigerian didn't get the permanent move from Napoli he desired in the summer but has now hit 17 goals in 22 games for Galatasaray and will be on the market in the summer.
But if United are seeking other options, they might have a No.9 who is proving his worth in the Premier League this season. Liam Delap has enjoyed a fine campaign with Ipswich and is likely to leave the Tractor Boys even if they survive in the top flight. An immediate return to the Championship would guarantee his departure.
Ipswich's move for Delap in the summer felt like a gamble, but the 22-year-old has been worth every penny of that £20m deal. His tally of nine goals in 23 games in the Premier League is respectable for the club he is at, and he has shown that he is the kind of physical, all-action striker that Amorim likes.
Delap sought out a few physical confrontations against United at Portman Road in Amorim's first game, and he has grown in stature this season. He is strong and quick, traits that Gyokeres put to good use under Amorim in Portugal.
Ipswich boss and former United first-team coach Kieran McKenna has been impressed with his development this season, believing Delap has come on leaps and bounds for exposure to the Premier League.
“There were so many outstanding individual performances in there, but Liam was fantastic. There is no doubt about that,” McKenna said after his side beat Chelsea at the end of December.
“I’ve been saying it to people around the club that he’s improving and he’s a different beast now to what he was in July. We’re seeing that rate of improvement from a 21-year-old, showing the increased maturity that he is, the desire to improve and that’s a really positive sign at 21."
Delap has already been linked with a move to a 'big six' club this summer, and with City holding a buy-back clause, a return to the Etihad was floated.
"He's doing really well," Pep Guardiola said of Delap recently. "Many players came up from this academy. They are set up perfectly in the Premier League.
"When he was here, always we thought he was a typical striker for the Premier League. He's doing really well and we're happy for him."
City's need for Delap has eased with their £59m January deal for Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt, and they appear to be out of the picture for their former academy hotshot this summer.
However, Delap will surely be on the move, and United should be keeping tabs on him. Gyokeres might be the top target, but the two are similar in their ability to run the channels and occupy defenders.
Delap isn't yet the finished article, but he already looks like an improvement on Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee and would strengthen Amorim's options at centre-forward.
