Man Utd eyeing “monster” Delap alternative who’s way better than Hojlund

The summer transfer window officially opened for business on Sunday and Manchester United have already completed their first signing to bolster the squad.

Matheus Cunha was officially unveiled as the first addition of the summer on Sunday, joining from Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers on a permanent deal.

The Brazil international will compete for one of the number ten positions behind the central striker in Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 system in the 2025/26 campaign.

Cunha racked up an impressive haul of 15 goals and six assists in the Premier League for Wolves this season, and could provide a big goal threat for the Red Devils.

The Brazilian star appears to be an exciting addition on paper, given that he has already proven himself in the Premier League, and there could be more forwards to come through the door yet.

Liam Delap, however, will not be one of them because the Red Devils look set to lose the race to land the England U21 international this summer.

Why missing out on Liam Delap is a blow for Manchester United

Chelsea are reportedly set to sign the English forward from Ipswich Town, following their relegation from the Premier League, for a fee of £30m, due to a release clause in his contract in Suffolk.

Champions League football is reportedly a big factor in his decision to make the move to Stamford Bridge, which may be why he is not on his way to Old Trafford, which will not be hosting any European football next season.

United were previously reported to be in pole position to sign Delap, before they lost the Europa League final, and missing out on him now should come as a blow to the club.

The 22-year-old joined the Tractor Boys on a permanent deal from Manchester City last summer and enjoyed an impressive debut campaign in the Premier League, despite failing to keep his side in the division.

As you can see in the table above, Delap was clinical in front of goal for Ipswich, scoring 12 goals from just 9.34 xG, and proved that he can score goals on a regular basis at that level.

The release clause in his contract also meant that he was available for a bargain fee of £30m, and the Red Devils may now have to pay more than that to find an alternative centre-forward option.

There is now a fresh report that reveals that the Premier League giants are looking at numerous other options to bolster their attack in the coming weeks.

Manchester United target Bundesliga centre-forward

According to Sky Sports, Manchester United missing out on Champions League football was a ‘major blow’ because it cost them a deal to sign Delap from Ipswich.

The report adds, however, that Amorim has other centre-forwards on his radar for the summer transfer window, as he looks to provide Cunha with a number nine to play behind.

It reveals that RB Leipzig number nine Benjamin Sesko has emerged as one of the options being targeted by the Red Devils, alongside Sporting marksman Viktor Gyokeres.

The Slovenia international is said to be one of the strikers on their radar, after missing out on Delap to Chelsea, and he reportedly has a release clause of £84m in his contract with the German side.

This suggests that Sesko could cost a lot more than Delap would have, £54m more to be exact, unless they can negotiate a lower fee, but he could still arrive as an exciting upgrade on Rasmus Hojlund for Amorim.

Why Manchester United should sign Benjamin Sesko

The Premier League giants should swoop to sign the Slovenian number nine this summer because he has the potential to be an excellent addition to the squad.

There is no hiding away from the fact that Hojlund did not produce enough in front of goal in the league during the 2024/25 campaign. The Denmark international ended the season with just four goals, from 5.24 xG, in 32 appearances in the division.

Manchester United’s first-choice centre-forward averaged a goal every 506 minutes in the Premier League, which is simply not good enough for a team that should have ambitions of challenging for the title.

With Sesko, the Red Devils could find a centre-forward who is more suited to challenging at the top end of the league table, given his form for RB Leipzig this term.

The 22-year-old star, who recently scored a sensational trivela goal against Bayern Munich, ended the 2024/25 campaign with a return of 21 goals and six assists in all competitions.

Sesko, who has been described as a “monster” by analyst Ben Mattinson, also scored 18 goals in 42 appearances in all competitions for Leipzig in the 2023/24 season, which shows that he has consistently scored goals at an impressive rate over a prolonged period of time.

As you can see in the table above, the Slovenia international performed significantly better than Hojlund did at league level this season, with nine more goals and five more assists, despite playing just one more match.

Sesko, who also scored one more goal than Delap, could be way better than the Danish flop due to his ability to efficiently find the back of the net at an impressive rate, outperforming his xG by roughly three goals.

Whether that is enough to make him worth the £84m release clause in his Leipzig contract is up for debate, as it depends on how much money United are willing to spend and what they want to do in other areas of the squad.

Taking the financial aspect out of it, though, Sesko could be an exceptional addition to the squad to improve Amorim’s attacking options as a genuine goal threat in the number nine position, which is something that they have not had with Hojlund.