# Liam Delap

Liam Rory Delap (born 8 February 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Ipswich Town.

## Club career
### Manchester City

Delap joined Derby County's academy at the age of six where he spent the next 10 years before joining Manchester City's academy in 2019, impressing from a young age and being capped at several youth levels with England. He scored a goal and set up two others in the final of the 2020 Under-18 Premier League Cup.
On 24 September 2020, Delap made his first-team debut in a 2–1 home win against AFC Bournemouth in the EFL Cup, scoring his first senior goal in the 18th minute. After the match, manager Pep Guardiola praised him and confirmed Delap would continue training with the first team. Three days later, he made his Premier League debut in a 5–2 home defeat by Leicester City, coming on as a substitute for Fernandinho in the 51st minute. In April 2021, Guardiola confirmed that Delap would be moved up to the first team permanently before the following season. Delap won his first trophy on 25 April, when City defeated Tottenham 1–0 in the League Cup final at Wembley Stadium. Delap, however, was not selected for the squad and instead had to follow the match from the stands.
During the 2021 pre-season, Delap suffered an injury to his foot, which led to him missing the Community Shield against Leicester City, which Manchester City lost 1–0, and the 2021–22 Premier League opener against Tottenham Hotspur, which they also lost 1–0. On 20 August, amid interest from several Championship clubs looking to loan him, Delap signed a three-year contract extension, keeping him at the club until 2026. Following a number of injuries, he made his first appearance of the season as a substitute in the FA Cup Third Round tie against Fulham in February 2022, and also came on during the 4–0 win over Norwich City in the Premier League, winning the penalty for the fourth goal. On 15 February 2022, Delap made his UEFA Champions League debut in the first leg of the round of 16 tie as a substitute for Bernardo Silva, in a 5–0 away win over Primeira Liga champions Sporting CP.
On 18 August 2022, Delap joined Stoke City on loan for the 2022–23 season. He scored his first goal for Stoke in a 3–1 win over Sheffield United on 8 October 2022. After making 23 appearances for Stoke, scoring three goals, Delap was recalled by Manchester City on 12 January 2023 and was sent to Preston North End for the remainder of the 2022–23 season.
On 2 July 2023, Delap joined Hull City on a season long loan. He made his debut on 5 August 2023 in the 2–1 loss away to Norwich City, scoring the opening goal of the match. Delap was named Hull City's Player of the Month for December 2023.

### Ipswich Town

On 13 July 2024, Delap joined newly promoted Premier League club Ipswich Town on a permanent deal worth up to £20 million on a five-year contract. Delap scored his first goal for the club on 31 August, netting the opener in a 1–1 draw with Fulham. On 29 September, he scored both goals in a 2–2 home draw with Aston Villa, becoming the first Ipswich player to net twice in a Premier League game since Marcus Bent in March 2002. On 30 December, Delap scored and assisted in a 2–0 home league win over Chelsea, helping the club win their first Premier League home game since 2002 as well as their first victory over the Blues since 1993.

## International career

Delap has represented England at youth level. He finished as top scorer at the 2019 Mercedes-Benz Aegean Tournament for U16 international sides in Turkey, and went on to play for the U17s. On 29 March 2021, Delap made his debut for England U18s during a 2–0 win away to Wales at Leckwith Stadium. On 23 March 2022, Delap made his U19 debut as a substitute in a 3–1 win over Republic of Ireland during 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification at the Bescot Stadium. On 17 June 2022, Delap was included in the England U19 squad for the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. He scored the only goal of the match in their last group fixture. On 1 July 2022, Delap came off the bench during extra time in the final and helped Aaron Ramsey score the last goal of the game as England beat Israel 3–1 to win the tournament.
On 21 September 2022, Delap made his England U20 debut and scored during a 3–0 victory over Chile at the Pinatar Arena. On 10 May 2023, Delap was included in the England squad for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup. On 11 September 2023, Delap made a goalscoring debut for England U21 during a 3–0 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification win away to Luxembourg.

## Personal life

Delap was born in Winchester, Hampshire, and is the son of former professional footballer Rory Delap, who represented the Republic of Ireland national team. His brother is Burton Albion player Finn Delap.
His paternal grandfather and three great-uncles are originally from Letterkenny, County Donegal while his paternal grandmother is from Moynalty, County Meath.

## Career statistics

    As of match played 15 March 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | EFL Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Europe | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Manchester City U21 | 2020–21 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Manchester City U21 | 2021–22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Manchester City U21 | Total | Total | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Manchester City | 2020–21 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 1 |
| Manchester City | 2021–22 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Manchester City | 2022–23 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Manchester City | 2023–24 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Manchester City | Total | Total | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| Stoke City (loan) | 2022–23 | Championship | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 23 | 3 |
| Preston North End (loan) | 2022–23 | Championship | 15 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 15 | 1 |
| Hull City (loan) | 2023–24 | Championship | 31 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 32 | 8 |
| Ipswich Town | 2024–25 | Premier League | 28 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 31 | 10 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 98 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 111 | 26 |
* 1 2 Appearances in EFL Trophy
* ↑ Appearance in UEFA Champions League

## Honours

England U19
* UEFA European Under-19 Championship: 2022