Frank Lampard expressed regret that Liam Delap, a player he pursued during the summer transfer window, ended up joining Nottingham Forest rather than Coventry City. Delap completed a club-record £45 million transfer from Chelsea to Forest and has already made an impact, scoring in the club’s recent 2-1 victory over Aston Villa.

Lampard, who manages Coventry City, acknowledged that Delap had been on the club’s radar this summer. He noted his longstanding awareness of Delap, dating back to their overlapping time at Derby County, where Lampard was in charge and Delap was part of the youth system. Despite interest, a transfer did not materialize, and Delap eventually moved from Chelsea to Manchester City midway through Lampard’s tenure at Derby.

“It was a player that we looked at, but not everything is possible,” Lampard said, highlighting the difficulties faced by clubs like Derby in retaining highly-rated young players. “He was on everybody’s radar then. It’s hard for clubs like Derby, at the time, to keep players of that level at a young age.”

Instead of securing Delap’s services, Coventry signed Taiwo Awoniyi from Nottingham Forest during the same transfer window. However, Awoniyi is set to miss the upcoming match against his former club due to suspension, following a red card received in last weekend’s game against Brighton.

Delap’s emergence at Nottingham Forest continues to attract attention, reflecting the challenges smaller clubs face in holding onto promising young talent amid competition from Premier League teams.