Darron Gibson doesn’t see Liam Delap as an upgrade on Rasmus Hojlund or Joshua Zirkzee

In the 1973-74 campaign, Manchester United were relegated to the then-second division. In 2024-25, the Red Devils finished 15th, their worst finish since that season.

The club also missed out on a lucrative Champions League spot after losing to Tottenham in the Europa League final, which means that we’ll see a lot of players being on sale this summer. Alejandro Garnacho has already been told by Ruben Amorim to look for a new club, as per The Athletic’s David Ornstein, and the futures of the likes of Kobbie Mainoo, Rasmus Hojlund and Bruno Fernandes are uncertain too.

In addition to that, the Red Devils clearly need to add quality to their attacking line with the likes of Matheus Cunha and Liam Delap linked to Old Trafford.

We sat down to discuss Manchester United’s transfer targets with Carrington product and former Man Utd midfielder Darron Gibson who gave his honest opinion on the links to Delap, Cunha, and more.

Delap is not an upgrade on Hojlund or Zirkzee - Osimhen is

Liam Delap rightly earned plaudits this season, scoring 12 goals and assisting two while playing for an Ipswich team that clearly lacked the quality needed to survive in the Premier League. The Englishman is expected to leave the Tractor Boys with the likes of Chelsea, Man United, Newcastle and Everton sniffing around for his signature.

Gibson, however, is not convinced that Delap is the right man and places him on the same pedestal as current Manchester United players Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee.

“Honestly? I don’t think Liam Delap is an upgrade on Zirkzee or Hojlund. They’re both so young and they’ve come in at a difficult time. Normally young strikers would have a more experienced striker to learn from and bounce off them.”

“If United had bought Harry Kane two summers ago I think Hojlund or Zirkzee would be different players learning from him. I don’t mean to take anything away from Delap but I don’t think he’s an upgrade.”

Gibson gives his reason for the hot take, echoing Rio Ferdinand’s words about the pressure that comes with playing for Manchester United. That’s the reason why the Irishman thinks Victor Osimhen is who Manchester United should be pursuing.

“Rio spoke about the pressure at United recently and how players don’t realise how difficult it is. Right now Delap is at Ipswich and there’s not much pressure on him. He’s playing with freedom but it’s different at United. They need an established striker.”

“Victor Osimhen would be my top target. He scores goals and he’s more experienced. He can teach the younger lads.”

Matheus Cunha and Antoine Semenyo signings endorsed

On the other hand, Gibson fully supports bringing Matheus Cunha to Manchester United, despite the Brazilian’s recorded history of misconduct and misdemeanours.

"The misdemeanours, I think they're quite minor to be honest. I don't think he'd do that at Man Utd."

"I think Cunha would be a good signing. Comfortable on the ball, creates a lot of chances that would take the pressure off of Bruno, who's our main creator at the minute. And Cunha's another attacking option for us."

Another player linked to the Red Devils is Antoine Semenyo and while Gibson doesn’t think the Ghanaian is the perfect fit for Amorim’s system, he can picture him adapting to it.

"The system that Amorim is playing, Semenyo would probably struggle to fit in. But, he's been in great form and I think he could probably adapt to the system."

"So I think he'd be worth the gamble."

Adam Wharton is the man that Man Utd desperately need

Gibson named another player that the Red Devils should go all in for, and that is Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton.

Gibson admits that he initially questioned Palace’s decision to buy Wharton from Blackburn, but his emergence in the middle of the park and success in the England squad have shown him why he’s so highly rated.

"Adam Wharton's done unbelievably since coming in. I did question it when they bought him."

"Then I watched him for a couple of games and realized he's really good. And now he's part of the England squad. "I think he'd be a very good signing as he's young as well."

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