Middlesbrough are said to be one of a number of English clubs weighing up a move for former Leeds United midfielder Glen Kamara this winter.

That’s according to a recent report from French outlet L’Equipe, who claim that the Teessiders are set to face competition from Premier League duo Southampton and Ipswich Town for the player, who currently plies his trade with Rennes in Ligue 1.

The Finland international only departed Elland Road over the summer, but reports claim that the 29-year-old has failed to live up to the billing since moving across the Channel for a fee said to be €10 million, with a potential loan move for the remainder of the season being mooted.

With that in mind, we spoke to Football League World’s resident Boro fan Jasper Hudson about his thoughts on the potential addition during the current transfer window, and Michael Carrick looks to add to a team struggling in the middle of the park of late.

After going down 2-1 to Portsmouth at Fratton Park on Saturday, Carrick and his side have now just won two of their last ten games in all competitions, with a weakness in the engine room costing them dearly since their poor run started at the start of December.

With the likes of Aidan Morris and Jonny Howson unavailable through injury, and Dan Barlaser and Hayden Hackney struggling for form, Boro have been on the ropes for much of the busy Festive period, with their deficiencies in key areas costing them dear in their challenge for a play-off spot.

As yet, the north-east side are yet to bring in any new faces to the Riverside this winter, but in Kamara they could have a player who could offer a reassuring presence in his midfield role, and Hudson believes that could be invaluable given the current state of the squad.

When asked about the proposition of bringing the Rennes midfield in, the Boro fan said: “As of right now I don’t see why we wouldn’t bring him in if it was an option.

“At the start of the season our midfield was such a strong point, however recently, mainly because of injuries but also players not playing well enough, I would look at bringing him in.

“I think [Hayden] Hackney has not been good enough recently, [Dan] Barlaser is really struggling at the moment, so the midfield is an area of real frustration at the minute.

“There is a lack of quality in there which is probably why the results aren’t going as well, because it is a team and a system that relies heavily on a good midfield and good midfield play, so if it is an option of a loan I don’t see why we wouldn’t bring him in.”

Although they are in seventh-spot at time of writing and outside the play-off positions on goal difference only, the wheels have started to fall off for Boro of late, and Carrick needs some extra personnel to help his side continue in their challenge to finish in the top six this season.

After a bright start to the season in which they kept pace with the leading pack in the division, their recent slump has the Teessiders fall out of contention and lose ground on their rivals, with a number of sides in the mix for a chance to be in the end-of-season lottery that is the play-offs.

With injuries playing their part, and extra pressure put on players who have been lacking that consistency of late, Hudson is adamant his side need extra players in the middle of the park for the remainder of the season to keep standards high week to week.

He continued: “It definitely feels like the squad needs some boosting, obviously [Aidan] Morris has just returned from injury, and [Jonny] Howson is out injured, so it would be good to strengthen that midfield, give something different, and hopefully improve the quality.

“We need to get Hackney especially, but Barlaser and Morris as well, all back to the level by having someone who has not been out injured and who will hopefully create competition for places. That should help to improve our midfield performances.”

A hearing for two men accused of being involved in a large cannabis farm in a derelict building in Ipswich town centre has been adjourned to obtain an interpreter for them.

Before Ipswich Crown Court on Monday via a prison video link were Kledis Zefi, 23, and Llazar Lepuri, 21, both of no fixed address.

Zefi has admitted producing cannabis and Lepuri has yet to enter a plea to the charge.

The hearing was adjourned until February 17 to allow an interpreter to attend. Both defendants are in custody.

Officers executed a pre-planned warrant under the Misuse of Drugs Act at a derelict business premises in Carr Street in December.

It was discovered that cannabis was being grown across four floors inside the building and the defendants were arrested on suspicion of cannabis cultivation and were taken to Martlesham police station for questioning.

After the discovery, Ipswich council executive member John Cook urged residents to contact the police if they have concerns about similar activities in the town.

He said: “In addition to illegal drugs getting on to our streets, there are other dangers: fire risk from dangerous wiring and excessive energy use, criminal exploitation of vulnerable people and potential for criminal violence between rival cartels.”

Ipswich Town had a real welcome to the Premier League moment, despite it being their 22nd match of the season, when they hosted the champions Manchester City at Portman Road.

Pep Guardiola’s side ran riot in Suffolk and crushed Kieran McKenna‘s men with a 6-0 victory, even taking off Kevin de Bruyne, Erling Haaland, and Phil Foden for the final 30 minutes or so.

It was the first time Ipswich have conceded five or more goals in a league game at Portman Road since 2021 against Bolton and the first time they have conceded six at home since a defeat to Leicester in 2011.

The Tractor Boys remain in the bottom three in the Premier League, on goal difference behind Wolverhampton Wanderers, but still have a realistic chance of avoiding the drop.

Bringing in more quality to bolster the squad could give them a better chance of climbing above Wolves to avoid going straight back down to the Championship. Jaden Philogene and Ben Godfrey have arrived as the first two additions of the January transfer window.

McKenna should be in the market to add more options to his attacking arsenal because the team needs to do more to create chances for Liam Delap at the top end of the pitch.

Liam Delap’s form this season

The England U21 international was brought in from Manchester City in the summer and has been the go-to man for goals for Ipswich in the Premier League so far this season.

He has scored a staggering 40% of the club’s goals in the division with eight of the 20 goals scored by the team, which speaks to how important the forward has been to their efforts to climb out of the bottom three.

Ipswich may have been further adrift of Wolves and the rest of the teams in the league without his quality in the final third, and they must find a way to get him even more involved in matches in the second half of the season.

As you can see in the table above, Delap has been incredibly clinical in front of goal, overperforming his xG by 1.64, but his teammates have not created a huge number of chances for him, with just 6.36 xG in 21 games.

The 21-year-old marksman has often had to fashion opportunities for himself with his powerful running and impressive dribbling, as you can see in the clip below.

Ipswich need to create more as a team to ensure that they are providing the forward with the ammunition he needs to be able to win games for the Tractor Boys to push them out of the bottom three in the weeks to come.

The January transfer window is still open for business and McKenna could make a dream signing for Delap by swooping for one of the club’s reported transfer targets, Julio Enciso.

Ipswich’s interest in Julio Enciso

Earlier this month, TWTD reported that Ipswich hold an interest in the Brighton & Hove Albion winger, as the board looks to bolster the squad before the end of the window.

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They reported on a claim from Nacion Media that the Tractor Boys and Leicester City are both eyeing up the forward for a loan move, and confirmed that he is a player of interest to the Suffolk-based side.

The Foxes, however, would need to cancel Facundo Buonanotte’s loan or sign the attacker on a permanent deal, as the Premier League rules do not allow a club to have two players on loan from the same top-flight team.

TWTD added that Enciso is a player the Tractor Boys have been tracking for some time and that they have had their eye on the Paraguay international for several transfer windows.

However, the report revealed that Ipswich are yet to make a formal enquiry over a deal to secure his services, which does not suggest that a transfer is close at this moment in time.

McKenna, however, should push for the club to get a deal over the line for the versatile attacker because he could come in as a dream signing for Delap in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.

Why Julio Enciso could be a dream for Liam Delap

Ipswich are not going to be able to sign proven, in-form, Premier League quality players whilst fighting relegation this season, which means that they have to take gambles – like Philogene and Godfrey.

Enciso would certainly be a gamble, given his lack of game time at Brighton, but his form, in limited minutes, for the Seagulls over the years suggests that the potential is there for him to be a creative force for the Tractor Boys.

Since the start of the 2022/23 campaign, the £19m-rated star has only started 14 matches in the Premier League, coming on as a substitute in a further 30 games.

The 20-year-old starlet, who was described as “Ronaldo-esque” for the strike above by Jamie Redknapp, has shown potential in the Premier League, with four goals and seven ‘big chances’ created despite only starting 14 times.

‘Ronaldo-esque’ is a good way to describe his style, albeit not quality at this moment in time, as he is a dynamic, right-footed, forward who can play on the left, as an attacking midfielder, or as a centre-forward, similar to Cristiano Ronaldo in his early days at Manchester United.

His most starts in a season for Brighton came in the 2022/23 campaign, starting seven of his 20 outings in the Premier League, and he showcased his quality at the top end of the pitch.

Boss Kieran McKenna admitted the Blues’ 6-0 defeat at home to Premier League champions Manchester City was a painful game with the visitors, who he believes still may be the best team in the world, too strong for his side in all aspects.

Town fell to their joint-heaviest ever home defeat to City, but having been well in the game up until the visitors went in front in the 27th minute through Phil Foden, the first of two, and then added a second via Mateo Kovacic three minutes later.

Foden’s second made it 3-0 at the break and Jeremy Doku, Erling Haaland, fresh form signing his new 10-year contract, and James McAtee completed the rout in the second half.0:24

“I think it was a really good game for 27 minutes, from our point of view, a really even game. We competed really well, certainly could have had the first goal, there were chances both ways but we could have had the first goal, was a really similar flow to our best games and best performances here against some of the big sides.

“But after the first goal, their confidence and quality went to a level that we weren’t able to cope with and they completely pulled away and took the game away from us.

“We still had some moments and opportunities but we weren’t able to punish them and any mistakes that we made, they ruthlessly punished them and showed their quality.

“The last 20, 25 minutes then was just a time where the team had to stick together, show character and try and stem the attacks that Man City were having, and I think the group did a pretty good job of that. But yes, a really, really difficult day, a difficult game and it is what it is.”

Quizzed on what lessons can be learnt from the afternoon, McKenna said: “I think playing against that level is new to us, there’s no doubt about that. We know how quickly we’ve climbed the ladder. There were a couple of occasions last year where we were outclassed by teams but we still found a way to have an incredible, incredible season.

“But certainly today, and on one or two other occasions this season, we haven’t been able to hit the level and if you can’t hit the level and the performance and the opposition have a very good day, then the game can completely get away from you.

“In terms of what we’ll take form today, I think there are a lot of things we need to reflect on. We need to analyse it, we need to have some good, honest conversations.

“The start of the game, as I say, had lots of positives. The first two goals were on shape and everyone’s behind the ball and we didn’t defend well enough against the moments. We were structurally fine but we didn’t defend the incidents well enough.

“We had some organisational issues either side of half-time after that, which we didn’t manage well enough but, having said that, I think we gave them problems and organisational issues with the ball as well.

“But we didn’t have the execution to go and punish them today and they punished every mistake we made and any issues that we had.

“I think we needed to manage that phase better and it’s not the first time this season. It is difficult, but we need to do it better, there’s no doubt about that. We needed to manage the phase better when the game got away from us.

“And then there’s the last phase of the game where some individuals really stood up, showed some real leadership in the pitch, the group stuck together and the crowd were fantastic, they showed an amazing togetherness with the group of players on the pitch.

“The group of players on the pitch stuck together and we need to take positives from that because those are some of the qualities that have helped us do what we’ve done up until this point and those are the qualities that we need to build on for the future of the team, the future of the club, and that was certainly shown at the end of the game today.”

McKenna felt the game showcased the gap between the teams at the top of the Premier League and those promoted from the Championship, although he believes City are capable of doing the same as they did to Town to other top sides.

“I think so,” he reflected. “But I think Man City are better than that on their day, to be honest. I think Man City can do some of what they did today to some of the better teams in the Premier League and to some top class European sides.

“The level of their execution, it wasn’t like our goal was absolutely peppered or we didn’t get out of our box, the level of their execution was just that high and they’ve done that to better teams than us over the last few years, and once they scored the first goal today, they really hit a top, top, top gear.

“So I don’t think today was necessarily just about the gap from the Championship or the EFL to the Premier League, I think it was bigger than that. It was the gap from that to, in that level of form, maybe still the best team in the world. And that gap was pretty big today.”

Town played Brighton on Thursday, while City’s previous match was the 2-2 draw at Brentford on Tuesday, giving the Blues a tight turnaround and the visitors two additional days in which to prepare.

“I think it was an issue and it has been a challenge,” McKenna said. “I think it’s quite a few games in a row where we’ve given up lead time [to the opposition] going into the game. Man City’s tough anyway but Thursday night to Sunday afternoon is our quickest turnaround of the season. To have that before you have Man City and I think we gave up days in all the games before that as well.

“We’ve had injuries and players probably coming back in quicker than we would have wanted. If I’m honest, Omari [Hutchinson]’s probably had to come back in the team quicker than would have been ideal in terms of his sharpness, and there are other instances like that.

“I think it’s a tricky spell for us from a physical point of view. We’re coming out the back of a really busy winter spell, the group’s been down in some positions. We’re trying to work back to full fitness, individuals are trying to work back towards full fitness.

“We’ve got new players coming into the group, who don’t have fitness and match fitness to the level they would want to be at yet.

“Trying to integrate all of that and get back to our best condition through an incredibly difficult run of games that we’ve had has been really, really tough.

“I think in general we’ve done a pretty good job of it, but today we weren’t able to do well enough and I think that was part of the issue.

“Again, we have one day fewer than Liverpool [who Town face at Anfield on Saturday] but it’s a better run-in, so we’ll get a few days’ training next week, which will be beneficial. A few days with the players who are coming back from injury and with the new players.

“After Liverpool, we have a week to Southampton and I think from that physical point of view, I still think we’ve got a challenging couple of weeks ahead, but I think if we keep doing the right things, if we stick together as a group, if we work well, I think in a few weeks’ time we can be in a much stronger position to attack the end of the season.”

McKenna says he didn’t say a lot to his players in the dressing room after the game with the post-mortem to come on Monday.

“We didn’t speak too much,” he said. “The time to speak is going to be when we get back to the training ground on Monday. I always give them my thoughts on the game from an honest perspective, which is pretty much what I’ve shared with you already. I give them my honest perspective on the game.

“A few players have the opportunity to speak if there’s anything they want to discuss in the group, and we’ll take it to the training ground and we’ll own it. We’ll own the things that we could have done better.

“We’ll analyse the game, we’ll reflect on the areas we need to improve, we’ll reflect on the positives from the game as well because for 27 minutes, if the game stopped then, everyone would have said, ‘What a really good performance, how incredible Ipswich have done to compete with Man City’.

“But the game doesn’t stop after a good start and we’ll certainly learn from the bits that we didn’t do well enough.

“But we’ll also take some of the positives from the start and also the finish to the game from a mental point of view, and we’ll move forward.

“We know we’ve got Liverpool away next week, we know it’s another massive, massive challenge, so we’re going to need to show an incredibly amount of character next week at the training ground and going to Anfield, and that’s what we’re going to try and do.”

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Michael Carrick has explained why he wants to make George Edmundson a permanent Middlesbrough signing this month – with the defender’s loan form and overall career experience the biggest factors.

Boro have decided to try and make Edmundson’s loan move to Boro a permanent one this month, though parent club Ipswich Town rejected the first bid believed to be £350k, with a further £350k on top if Boro win promotion. Talks are continuing between the two clubs to try and come to an agreement.

Boro’s move comes despite Edmundson’s loan deal keeping him at Boro until the summer, at which point his Ipswich contract expires and he will be available on a free transfer. Wanting to remove any uncertainty or potential competition though, as well as free up a potential loan spot in the squad, Carrick and Jonathan Woodgate have pushed for Boro to make Edmundson’s move a permanent one, with both delighted with what he’s added to the side – both on and off the pitch.

Carrick explained: “George has done really well. We brought him in on loan. It was one of those where it fitted all parties. I’ve said it a number of times, it’s not always simple, there’s a lot of parties involved. Sometimes you go in and you know exactly what you’re getting out, sometimes it’s a little bit in the balance.

“George has done fantastically well for us. He’s settled in really well. We’re really happy with him. I think it’s getting the balance right as well, in terms of recruitment and the dynamics of the squad. That’s really important.

“Spread of age is one thing, types of experience is something else as well. It’s a different thing. It’s not always an age thing, it depends what you’ve gone through and the types of experiences you’d had.We’re conscious of that to try and get the balance right moving forward.”

Speaking on Wednesday, Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna also admitted there were talks ongoing. He said: “I don’t think there’s anything to announce, but I believe that there’s interest there. I think there are some discussions going on that I haven’t been involved in.

“He’s been having a good season, which is great to see. Middlesbrough are having another good season. I think there’s some interest on that side. Whether a deal is possible to be done, I’m not sure.”

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