Highly rated Premier League striker closes door on Ireland switch due to FIFA rule

He is the son of a former Republic of Ireland international.

Liam Delap - son of former Republic of Ireland midfielder Rory Delap -  has been touted as a potential 'granny rule' recruit for Ireland for the last couple of years.

The 21-year-old has just joined Ipswich Town on a permanent move from Manchester City, where he rose through the academy ranks.

Due to the new FIFA eligibility rules, if Delapy makes an appearance in the upcoming England Under-21 international, it would end any chances of playing for Ireland over the next couple of years.

Delap made two appearances for Manchester City in the Premier League and spent last season on loan with Hull in the Championship, scoring eight goals in 32 appearances.

Former Ireland boss Stephen Kenny seemed to have his eyes on Delap during his tenure and, earlier this month, Shay Given urged Ireland's new managerial team to go all out to get him into the fold.

Speaking on Premier Sports, Given said: "[Evan Ferguson] is still so young and we expect so much. A year ago we were talking about this being the answer to all our problems with the Irish team.

"Sammie Szmodics has just signed for Ipswich, another Premier League team. You see Liam Delap playing with them as well.

"I know he has played for England underage, but his dad Rory Delap we all know, I played with him of course," he continued.

"If I was the new manager, I would be getting all these players on board. Liam Delap is quick, he's powerful, and he's a good finisher...

"England are sort of scouring the world for players. We're a smaller nation, we have to do the same thing. Get these players on board and get them capped, like Liam Delap, and strengthen the squad."

However, Delap has now been named in the England Under-21s squad for games during the forthcoming international break.

He’s in the England 21’s squad.

BUT Denis Cirkin isn’t. https://t.co/TXGj3j0eTW

— Rep of Ireland Player Tracker (@reptracker) August 30, 2024

According to the new FIFA eligibility rules, if interim coach England Under-21 interim boss Ben Futcher were to play Delap in any of those games, it would bring to an end his chances of playing for Ireland over the next few years.

Before the rule change, U21 international appearances were not taken into account when a player attempted to switch their international eligibility.

That's no longer the case.

If Delap plays a single minute across the upcoming U21 fixtures, it will count as a competitive international appearance meaning he could not immediately switch to another international team after those games.

There is, however, a three-year cooling-off period after which an international switch would then be possible.

In other words, if Delap features, he can't switch his allegiances to Ireland for three years. It's worth mentioning that Delap has never expressed any interest in declaring for Ireland, so it's likely it would never have happened in the first place.