LIAM Delap's size and skill marked him out by the time he was nine.
But his phenomenal competitiveness was the key to making him one of the most exciting strikers in European football.
On Sunday he faces Manchester City, the club that decided to sell him to Ipswich for £20 million last summer.
Despite Thursday's 2-0 home defeat against Brighton, the Tractor Boys hope that Delap's goals can keep them safe from Prem.
The Winchester-born star joined Derby County's academy in 2009, at the same time that Darren Wassall took charge of the academy there.
And by the time the youngster was able to formally register as an under-nine, the Rams knew they had something special.
Wassall told SunSport: “We had American owners and we had to do a presentation in 2011 or 2012 to say who the three best players were in each age group who we thought could get through to a scholarship.
“We still have the slides from when Liam was under nine or under ten and he was one of the three.”
All-rounder Delap tried out many sports at school.
He built up his speed by sprinting. Gymnastics helped make his large frame strong and agile.
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And a bit of javelin throwing contributed to his ability to make impressive long throws, just like his father – former Stoke, Southampton and Derby midfielder Rory – until other children's parents complained his bombs were spoiling matches and he quit.
In any case, Delap's attributes were more valuable in the penalty area than from the sideline.
Wassall said: “He was always one of the biggest and most powerful players in his age group, and probably the age group above that.
“He could work his way around and had a really good attack with his laces. He could place one from 20 yards, or 30 yards as he got older.
“But what really set him apart was his desire to compete.”
Sometimes Delap's will to win went too far.
Wassall said: “Off the field he was likeable, so modest and humble and quiet.
“The field was his stage, it was like a switch was turned on.
“He was fearless. He didn't mind getting hurt. He went with goalkeepers and defenders into the six-yard area, where the boots flew.
“But his competitiveness was also a challenge for us.
“He was so on the edge at times because he was so desperate to win, to perform well and score goals, that it boiled over.
“He mainly challenged decisions, usually in a good way, but there were times when we had to intervene and take him out for his own good.
“We had to show him that you can't boil over because if you play for the first team and you do that, you get sent off, you miss three games and you're no good for anyone.”
Derby also ensured that Delap did not rely too much on his physical attributes.
He played in higher age groups and worked hard on his technique.
Wassall said: “I remember seeing him as an under-14 or under-15, playing for the under-16s, and he scored five goals against Sunderland, I think.
“Every finish was different.”
In 14 years at Derby, Wassall oversaw the development of more than 40 players, who played more than 1,200 first-team games for the Rams.
But Delap did not follow the same path as Willl Hughes, Jeff Hendrick and others.
He attracted the attention of clubs across Europe, including Bayern Munich,
And one day Wassall had to call father Rory, now a coach at the Derby Academy, to tell him that Manchester City were looking for his son.
Wassall, now head of youth development at the EFL, said: “It was bittersweet because we wanted him to progress into the first team.
“He was part of the Derby family. His younger brother Finn was there too and Rory worked there.
“But it was a no-brainer for him to go.”
Delap's move to City in 2019 was a big step in his football education.
Kevin Betsy, the former Fulham, Barnsley and Wycombe striker, was the teenager's head coach at international level for four years.
And Betsy saw Delap develop in confidence and all-round performance after initially being called up to the England under-15s.
Betsy told Sun Sport: “There were a lot of players in the squads of high-level clubs such as Liverpool, Man United and Chelsea.
“Derby is a fantastic academy but they were in the EFL. That can be accompanied by a feeling of: 'Am I good enough for this level of player?'
“In the first under-15 camps he probably didn't show his true level.”
But in his last year at Derby and his first at CIty, Delap was part of the great England under-16 team with Jude Bellingham, Jamal Musiala, Harvey Elliott and Levi Colwill.
One of many highlights was scoring in a 4-0 win over Brazil, which so infuriated the South Americans that they had to send off two players.
Betsy said: “The move to City took him to another level technically and tactically because of the way they played in their academy.
“City often used number 9 as a central point in the build-up. Liam got a lot of balls to his feet with his back to goal and dropped deeper than a natural number 9 to coordinate the play.
“His hold-up game improved tremendously and that was fantastic when he got into the national team.”
But not so great when Betsy went to work for Arsenal's under-23 side and found himself coaching against Delap.
Betsy added: “I remember a 3-3 draw against City in the Emirates.
“You could tell your players what to expect from the opponents.
“But he scored two goals, one from nowhere, and set up the other. He became too good for PL2.”
The city thought so too. Delap scored on his senior CIty debut in the Carabao Cup in 2020 when he was 17, but was loaned out to Stoke and Preston in 2022/3, and to Hull last season.
Betsy said, “Some of the loans probably didn't go as well as he would have liked.
“But he would have become stronger from those moments.
“He would have understood what it takes to be a first-team player in competitive football, and what that feels like.
“Having a chance in front of a large audience is a different pressure.
“When you see some of the goals there were flashes of the Liam Delap of the future.”
Ipswich saw enough to spend an initial £15 million to sign Delap last summer.
But City added a buy-back clause and Betsy wouldn't be surprised if the 21-year-old found his way back to the club Ipswich face on Sunday.
Betsy, now a first-team coach at QPR who focuses on individual development, said: “There is no ceiling to what Liam can achieve.
“Liam will be a player for England, a centre-forward and, if he doesn't make it at Ipswich, in a high-level team in the Premier League.
“For me he is good enough for Man City.
“Right now as a backup for Erling Haaland, but if he were to move on, Liam would be next.”
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