Why Chelsea have the edge over Man U in race for £40m perfect modern striker with 12 G/A | OneFootball

Manchester United and Chelsea have gone in opposite directions in terms of strikers in the last few years.

United went big on Rasmus Hojlund, then went big again on Joshua Zirkzee. Neither has really worked out yet.

Chelsea meanwhile picked up a bargain basement buy in Nicolas Jackson, and have since kept their powder dry, much to the frustration of so many Blues fans. Despite taking different routes, both teams have ended up in the same situation however – they both still want a top tier elite goalscorer.

Chelsea set to battle united for rising striker

Liam Delap celebrates a goal for Ipswich. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Both teams seem to have settled on the same name, according to CaughtOffside – Liam Delap. The Ipswich forward is doing really well in the Premier League and has ten goals and 2 assists despite playing for a team battling relegation.

He’s got the right physical skillset, especially as the trend seems to move back towards big, robust forwards. He’s a hard worker, has great touch for a big man, and at 22 still has so much developing still to do. The £40m price tag currently on his head looks like it could be a bargain in the long run.

The fact that Chelsea have spent less money on strikers than United may mean they’re more willing to sanction a big bid for Delap, and the fact they are more likely to have European football to offer could help them too.

We can see Delap and Jackson complementing each other really well on the pitch, and their game is similar enough that one could replace the other – unlike the situation we now have where backup forward Christopher Nkunku couldn’t be more different to Jackson.

Unlike in the pursuit for Dean Huijsen, we are confident we can beat out the competition in this race.