Stoke City and Preston North End may find Liam Delap, Ipswich Town news hard to believe | OneFootball

The Potters and the Lilywhites never saw the best of Delap in his time at either club - he is now set to leave Ipswich for £30m

Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap is one of English football's hottest properties right now after a stellar debut Premier League campaign for the Tractor Boys, but while he looks set to join a top club this summer, his rapid rise may well come as a surprise to supporters of both Stoke City and Preston North End.

Delap was a highly-rated youth striker as he emerged through the ranks at Manchester City, and had already made his Premier League and Champions League debuts by the time he joined Stoke on loan in the summer of 2022.

He was unable to make much of an impact with the Potters though, at just 19-years-old, and suffered the same fate at Preston as he moved on loan to the Deepdale outfit in January 2023.

Despite his struggles at both clubs, he went on to impress in the Championship at Hull City in 2023/24, and Ipswich saw fit to fork out an initial £15 million to sign him permanently from Man City last summer.

Now, nearly a year on, he has proved himself as one of the best young strikers in world football throughout this campaign, and Stoke and Preston fans will surely be scratching their heads wondering how he has become so good, so quickly.

Liam Delap struggled at Stoke and Preston in his first two loan spells

It seemed like destiny that Liam, son of Stoke legend Rory Delap, would play for the Potters at one point in his career, and it turned out that his first ever loan spell as a professional was in ST4 for the 2022/23 campaign.

Delap joined the Potters from the Citizens on a season-long deal, but he never really looked ready for senior football in his time at the bet365 Stadium, and his spell was likely not helped by boss Michael O'Neill being sacked just one week after he joined in late August.

Aged just 19, he displayed some positive signs with his impressive strength and raw power, but it took him nine games to open his account for Stoke, with a late strike against Sheffield United, and he soon only began to appear from the bench under new head-coach Alex Neil.

A two-month goalless spell followed, but he soon looked to be getting back on the right track with successive goals in games against Cardiff City and Bristol City in December. Despite his small revival, he was recalled by Man City in the January window and was then sent to fellow second-tier side Preston for the remainder of the campaign.

Delap's struggles to adjust to life in the Championship only continued with the Lilywhites, as Everton loanee Tom Cannon was often preferred from the off by manager Ryan Lowe.

He started just six games for Preston in the second-half of the season, with his sole strike for the club coming in a 4-1 defeat to Sheffield United in the penultimate game of the campaign, although he also played a big part in a last-minute equaliser against Blackburn Rovers, driving forward with the ball and forcing a Dom Hyam own goal from his shot.

It was fair for all parties to admit that his first full season at senior level had not gone to plan, but he still had plenty of time to prove his worth in the years to come, and he now looks to be well on his way to fulfilling the sky-high potential that he was touted to have in his time at the Etihad Stadium.

Delap has been a standout for Ipswich - he is set to play at the highest level next season

Hull were not dissuaded by Delap's struggles at Stoke and Preston, and so moved to sign him on loan for the 2023/24 campaign, which proved to be a good decision as he netted eight goals in 31 Championship appearances while they battled to make the top-six.

Despite impressing with the Tigers, it was still a surprise to see Ipswich fork out an initial £15 million to sign him permanently from Man City last summer following their promotion to the Premier League, but their move has proved to be a masterstroke given his form in the top-flight over his debut season at Portman Road.

The 22-year-old has announced himself on the big stage this term, with 12 league goals in his maiden Premier League campaign despite Kieran McKenna's side having their relegation confirmed with four games still to play last month.

He hit the ground running at Portman Road, with six strikes in his first 11 league outings, and he has continued to shine as McKenna's main man up-front to be one of the most in-demand players in the Premier League ahead of the summer window.

His performances have put interested clubs on high alert as a transfer battle beckons, after it was revealed that his current contract has a £30m release clause that numerous top sides are understandably keen on exercising.

Chelsea and Newcastle have each been credited with major interest in his services, but Sky Sports News have revealed that Delap would be happy to move to Manchester United this summer, with the Red Devils claimed to be in pole position to sign him if they seal a place in the Champions League by winning the Europa League next week.

Delap has not only proved those that doubted his big-money move to Ipswich last summer wrong, but he has also sprung a surprise for those that support Stoke and Preston. His potential to be a great striker was there in his time at each club, but many would not have expected him to have progressed so quickly in such a short space of time.