The 18-year-old returned from a five-month layoff due to an ankle injury with a 13-minute appearance from the substitutes bench as City beat Fulham to progress to the FA Cup fifth round.
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It was very nearly a dream comeback for Delap, who thought he’d headed in his second senior goal only for the assistant referee to correctly flag for a marginal offside.
The striker was making just his fifth appearance at any level, in a campaign disrupted by successive ankle injuries, but his time out has done nothing to diminish Guardiola’s appreciation of his talent.
The City boss feels he is different to every other forward at the Club, urging the teenager to be patient in order to reap the rewards his quality deserves.
“He is the type of striker we don’t have,” Guardiola explained.
“He is a killer, a typical British striker, an incredible finisher. He has to improve when he drops, his first touch.
“The only problem we had this season from the beginning is he has been injured. He struggled a lot with his ankles and was not fit.
“He has a special quality. He is a different type of striker. The goal is offside, but he is there. I am happy for him.
“He is 18-years-old. One of the precious values you have to be in that age is to be patient. If you fight in every training session, it will pay off in your career and you will get what you deserve.
“Nobody knows what is going to happen next season. What he has to do is work for himself and do what he is doing and be fit.
“Today he played with the first team of Manchester City. Be patient, fight and, in the right moment for the quality he has, he will get what he deserves.”
City were 4-1 up by the time Delap and fellow Academy graduate James McAtee were introduced, with Riyad Mahrez’s quickfire double putting the hosts in a commanding position after a keenly contested first half.
Fulham had taken the lead through Fabio Carvalho in the second minute, but the Premier League leaders responded instantly through Ilkay Gundogan, before John Stones headed us in front.
It was a well earned victory for City, who hit the ground running after a two week break between games and, on a weekend when several upsets proved the famed magic of the FA Cup is alive and well, Guardiola was satisfied with his team’s efforts.
“Yeah [I’m pleased with the performance], especially the second half,” he added.
“When a team is top of the Championship it is because they are good. They are one of the highest scoring teams in Europe because they are really good.
“Marco has created an incredible team. We spoke a lot with the players about how difficult it would be and we should fight and run and defend well because they are a team who monopolise the ball.
“The second half was much better. We adjusted our pressing in the first half, which was not good.
“That was my fault because we expected one movement that didn’t work well. In the second half we adjust a little bit and it was much better.
“Of course, the quality of our players made the difference. After two weeks off, it is always a mystery how we will play. The players played good, they fought and they run and they defend really well.
“Very pleased to be in the next round. This round showed us how difficult the FA Cup is. There can be many surprises and we won against a very top team.”
