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Football

14th Dec 2016

Damien Delaney is better than Paul Pogba. Not our words but the words of this excited bunch

Expect the Corkman to be starring in the next adidas ad

Darragh Murphy

We wouldn’t hold our breaths waiting for Damien Delaney’s €100 million move but, still, this was a gorgeous little flick.

The Corkman came up with a sublime piece of skill at the start of the second half to set up the equaliser for James McArthur when Crystal Palace hosted Manchester United on Wednesday night.

United claimed all three points but it was the performance of the Irish defender that stole the headlines. Well, not so much the performance as this one touch.

Not what you would call the flashiest player on any pitch, Delaney provided a no-look, first time flick that played in McArthur perfectly.

Full back Joe Ward guided it into Delaney’s nimble feet.

1

One nimble foot stepped over the ball while the other *still nimble* foot flicked it in off its instep and into space.

2

It was glorious. It was special. It was… nimble.

3

And Delaney rightly celebrated just as much as the goal’s eventual finisher.

4

It was a decent piece of skill. We’re not going to deny that.

But some went that step further and believed it was the perfect proof that the defender, who has nine caps for Ireland, was better than the most expensive player in world football.

We’re not prepared to take that leap just yet but, hey, everybody’s entitled to an opinion.

And everybody is also entitled to use this symbol “>” and the fact that Pogba scored the first and assisted the winner was never going to stop this bunch.

https://twitter.com/Maradona_AVFC10/status/809147064273825792

https://twitter.com/MattDocherty/status/809147389776896001

https://twitter.com/JoeRalph95/status/809147442130284544

https://twitter.com/Chungltfc/status/809148278134558720

https://twitter.com/HarryWright27/status/809152475274117120

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