Premier League outfit Ipswich Town “will listen to offers” for striker Ali Al-Hamadi, who was previously linked with Sunderland prior to signing for the Tractor Boys, according to reports.

The 22-year-old moved to Portman Road from AFC Wimbledon last January, but has struggled to make much of an impact in East Anglia, and has registered just five goals in 27 appearances. So far this season, he is yet to score in the Premier League, having drawn a blank in each of his 11 outings.

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It is within this context that Ipswich are reportedly considering Al-Hamadi’s exit, with a permanent transfer preferred. Writing on X, journalist Darren Witcoop said: “Ipswich will listen to offers for Ali Al-Hamadi. The Tractor Boys are keen to sell rather than loan out the striker.”

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Reports from elsewhere suggest that Al-Hamadi is attracting interest from the Championship, with the East Anglian Daily Times suggesting that Stoke City are showing an interest in the player. The Potters recently appointed Mark Robbins as their new manager, and could be in the hunt for a new centre-forward after Tom Cannon was recalled from his loan stint by parent club Leicester City earlier this month.

It is also understood that Al-Hamadi held talks with West Brom, now managed by ex-Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray, earlier in the week, but a proposed transfer collapsed, freeing up other clubs in the second tier to pursue a deal for the Iraq international.

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Al-Hamadi is understood to have cost Ipswich around £1 million this time last year, although that fee is said to have risen to somewhere in the region of £2 million with subsequent add-ons. Town boss Kieran McKenna has previously hinted that the club would only consider sanctioning the forward’s departure if they could first bolster their own attacking options this January.

He said: “It’s a big if. We like to have three centre-forwards in the building, or three people who are comfortable in that role. We know that we always use two in pretty much every game since I’ve been here. It’s very rare that we won’t use two strikers, and of course, if you lose one, you’re a lot shorter.

“We want to have three forwards in the building. Hopefully if George Hirst can come through the very last bit now, we’ll have Liam [Delap], George and Ali in the building, which leaves us in a pretty good position. “If we go like that until the end of the season, we’ll have some strong options there. If there are any changes in that, then of course the situation could change for the players here. At the moment, hopefully George gets back and we have the three of those. That gives us the base to work from that we want.”

Al-Hamadi was touted as a potential target for Sunderland last January after having enjoyed a prolific stint with Wimbledon during which he scored 27 goals and assisted eight more across 48 outings. The Black Cats reportedly even went as far as to register their interest in the forward, as well as sending scouts to watch him in action.

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Middlesbrough could see Johnson as an option for them down the line.

He will initially link up with their Under-21’s with a view to breaking into the first-team later.

Eastbourne Borough snapped him up last July to bolster their ranks. He has since made 24 appearances in all competitions and has chipped in with one goal and two assists.

After joining the sixth tier outfit, he told their website: “It is a massive club, so coming here is very exciting. You want to express yourself and give your best for the team. The size and ambition of the club definitely attracted me.

“It’s a massive jump, but learning things tactically from the coaches allows you to simplify your game and understand your role. With such good quality coaches at Eastbourne, it makes the transition easier.”

He added: “A few people say I’m similar to Kobbie Mainoo. Off the ball, sometimes I can be like (N’Golo) Kante. It’s not a bad mix.”

Eastbourne Borough are currently sat in 6th place in the league and are only three points off Boreham Wood at the top.

It will be a big blow to lose Johnson mid-way through a campaign. However, it is a hard for them to stand in the way of a move to Boro.

What now for Middlesbrough target Brayden Johnson?

Middlesbrough will hope Johnson can hit the ground running with their development squad.

Carrick’s men are back in action this weekend with an away trip to Preston North End.

Liverpool will look to maintain their six-point lead at the top of the Premier League table when they welcome Ipswich Town to Anfield on Saturday afternoon.

Arne Slot‘s men come into the game on the back of a dramatic late win over Brentford last weekend, and a 2-1 victory over Lille in the Champions League on Tuesday which extended their 100% start on the continent.

Liverpool are assured of a spot in the top two of the league phase in Europe, meaning they can now relax and put their full focus on getting past relegation-candidates Ipswich.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up all of Liverpool’s latest injury and suspension news ahead of their clash with the Tractor Boys, who are in desperate need of a response to their 6-0 drubbing at home to Manchester City last weekend.

Status: Out
Type of injury: Muscle
Possible return date: February 12 (vs. Everton)

Jota missed both wins over Brentford and Lille due an overload in a muscle, but Slot has confirmed he will return in the next few weeks, with the problem not as serious as previous issues he has suffered.

Joe Gomez

Status: Out
Type of injury: Hamstring
Possible return date: Unknown

A hamstring injury has seen Gomez miss the last six matches for the Reds, but like Jota, Slot has confirmed that it is a matter of weeks and not months until he returns.

Curtis Jones

Status: Minor doubt
Type of injury: Knock
Possible return date: January 25 (vs. Ipswich Town)

Manager Slot revealed after the win over Lille that Jones felt slight discomfort in the first half, and was unable to run it off, leading to his half-time substitution, and the extent of the problem is not yet clear.

LIVERPOOL’S SUSPENSION LIST

Liverpool have no players suspended for this contest.

Manchester United reportedly failed with a last-ditch attempt to sign Julio Enciso on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, with the attacker instead expected to join Ipswich Town for the remainder of the campaign.

There has recently been a host of speculation surrounding Enciso’s future, with Brighton deciding that his development would be best-served by spending the second half of the season on loan at another club.

Atalanta BC and Valencia are among the clubs to be linked with the 20-year-old, but Ipswich appear to have won the race, with an announcement regarding a move to Portman Road expected to arrive in the near future.

According to Tuttomercatoweb, Man United made a last-ditch attempt to sign the Paraguay international, with the Red Devils looking at potential replacements for Alejandro Garnacho, who is being heavily linked with Napoli and Chelsea.

However, the 20-time English champions were too late, with a move to Ipswich already being agreed for a player who has scored five goals and registered six assists in 57 appearances for Brighton in all competitions.

Man United ‘failed with last-minute Enciso move’

Journalist Christian Martin went into further detail in a conversation with Paraguay’s Versus, claiming that Enciso rejected Man United as he wants to be considered first choice at this stage of his career.

“What I can tell you is that at the last minute of yesterday’s day, a call from Manchester United arrived,” said Martin.

“Manchester United wanted Julio to be potentially the replacement in case Garnacho goes to Napoli or another club, there are several interested, Garnacho has had a problem with Amorim.

“The situation is not the same in the club that he grew up, Garnacho has been playing for many years as a youth player and immediately came the call from the United board to attempt Julio.

“The answer of the Paraguayan, thank you but no thank you, I want to play. Julio turns 21 tomorrow, we are already talking about a Paraguayan boy on the other side of the world in the most competitive league that is fighting for his future and really say no to Borussia Dortmund, say no to Manchester United, say no to Valencia, prioritise that, playing, he wants to play from the start.”

The rumours surrounding Garnacho’s future continue to gather pace, and it is a genuine possibility that the Argentina international will leave Old Trafford before the end of the January transfer window.

Napoli have allegedly already had a bid rejected but are considering returning with a new one amid claims that Man United will let him leave for a fee in the region of £55m.

Chelsea are also being linked with Garnacho, with the Blues said to be considering making an offer for the 20-year-old, who has scored eight times and registered five assists in 32 appearances for Man United this season.

The Red Devils are said to be open to selling Garnacho for financial reasons, as his departure would be counted as pure profit under the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability rules.

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Michael Carrick has suggested Middlesbrough will try to re-sign George Edmundson this month if a deal is viable, after Ipswich Town recalled him from his loan on Tuesday.

Edmundson had impressed in the first half of the season while on loan at Boro. So much so that Boro were trying to negotiate a deal with the Tractor Boys to sign the defender permanently this month.

However, with no fee agreed and a deadline to activate a loan recall clause this week, Ipswich took the decision to recall the 27-year-old.That’s despite the fact that the centre-back is out of contract in the summer, unable to join any other club this month due to already playing for both Ipswich and Boro this season, and that he seemingly does not feature in head coach Kieran McKenna’s plans.

Asked about Edmundson’s Boro exit and whether they might still be able to negotiate a deal for him to return to the Riverside before the end of the transfer window, Carrick said: “We knew it was a possibility. We didn’t know when it might come.

“The ball was in their court in terms of that situation. What happens next, we’ll have to wait and see. It’s not long happened so we’ll explore what happens next. It’s something we’ll look at for sure. George has done well but it needs to be right for all parties so we’ll see how that goes.”

The recall decision will come as a blow to the defender, who struggled for game-time in the last two seasons at Portman Road. He made 21 appearances for Boro in the first half of the campaign and was set to be an important player for the run in.

What made the Ipswich decision even worse is that it came on Tuesday afternoon, just hours before Boro played a crucial Championship game against top-six rivals West Brom. In Edmundson’s absence, Boro managed to win the game 2-0.

Asked if there was any frustration in Ipswich’s decision so close to a match, the Boro boss continued: “We were aware of it and we knew it was a possibility. It’s the case with a lot of loans that there is a cut off point before the deadline.

“We knew it was a possibility before tonight and we planned for the game with that in mind, so it didn’t affect preparation for the game too much. We knew it was a possibility so he wasn’t going to start tonight’s game anyway, just in case. It is what it is. Sometimes you’re fully in control, sometimes you’re not and you’ve got to adapt.”

Given how well he’d settled on Teesside and became an important player for Boro, both on the pitch and in the dressing room, Edmundson would have fair reason to be extremely frustrated by Ipswich’s decision.

But asked about Edmundson’s thoughts and whether he would want to sign for Boro this month, Carrick said: “He enjoyed it. I think it’s wrong of me to speak for George, but he’s loved it here, he’s played a lot of football and he’s been an important part of what we’ve done. It’s been an important experience for him.

“I have spoken to him since it happened. Again, I can’t speak for him in terms of how he feels about the decision, but he had a real positive experience here and we’ll just have to see what happens next.”

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