Ipswich Town were given another reminder of the gigantic task they are facing in the second half of the season when Manchester City visited Portman Road on Sunday.

The Tractor Boys are in the relegation zone, but are within touching distance of Wolverhampton Wanderers, and their efforts to climb to safety were not boosted by their clash with Pep Guardiola’s side.

Kieran McKenna‘s men were swept aside with relative ease as the champions secured a 6-0 win, with the scoreline safe enough for them to take Kevin de Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Erling Haaland off the pitch with 30 minutes to go.

The January transfer window is open for business, though, and this means that they have the chance to add more quality to the squad, in an attempt to avoid relegation straight back down to the Championship at the first time of asking.

Ipswich have already brought in two new signings with Premier League experience. Ben Godfrey arrived on loan from Atalanta and Jaden Philogdene has been signed from Aston Villa on a permanent deal.

The Tractor Boys are now, however, reportedly interested in a deal to sign a player who was playing football in the Championship in the 2023/24 campaign.

Ipswich’s interest in Ligue 1 dynamo

According to French outlet L’Equipe, Ipswich are one of a number of clubs eyeing up a swoop to sign Rennes central midfielder Glen Kamara this month.

The report claims that a return to England is on the cards for the former Arsenal academy graduate, who only signed for the Ligue 1 club from Leeds United last summer.

It states that several teams are fighting it out to secure his services for the second half of the season, including Ipswich, Middlesbrough, Southampton, and Turkish outfit Trabzonspor.

The outlet adds that Trabzonspor are currently the most active team in the race, as they look to snap him up ahead of the interested parties from England.

This shows that Ipswich will face plenty of competition to strike a deal for the Finland international before the end of the January transfer window, which means that they may have to act quickly if they want to bring him to Portman Road.

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L’Equipe does not, however, reveal whether or not Rennes are willing to send the £30k-per-week gem out on loan or if they would prefer to sell him on a permanent basis, whilst there is also no mention of any potential transfer fee for the ex-Rangers star.

Whether it is on loan or a permanent move, Ipswich’s interest in Kamara in the January transfer window will come as bad news to club captain Sam Morsy, who plays in his position.

Ipswich’s rapid rise from League One to the Premier League, with back-to-back promotions, has led to several players, essentially, making the jump from the third tier to the top-flight within 18 months or so.

This has meant that several stars from the promotion-winning side in League One, and in the Championship, have not been able to successfully make the step up to the Premier League.

Morsy has not been a complete disaster in the top-flight because he has, at least, been a consistent starter for McKenna – starting 19 of his 20 appearances – rather than being moved on or left on the bench week-in-week-out.

The Egypt international has made 3.2 tackles and interceptions per game, attempting to provide a combative presence in the middle of the park, but has also committed almost as many fouls (1.9) as tackles made (2.2) per match on average.

The 33-year-old veteran, who has been dribbled past regularly in midfield, should, therefore, be concerned about a new arrival in his position, as it could have an impact on his game time.

Why Ipswich should sign Glen Kamara

Ipswich should push to win the race for Kamara before the window officially slams shut at the end of next month because he could come in as an upgrade on Morsy in the middle of the park.

The Finland international may be more suited to what the Tractor Boys need in midfield as they attempt to avoid relegation from the Premier League, due to his strength in duels and his security in possession.

Neil McCann, his former boss at Dundee, once described the midfielder as being “made of iron” and his physical statistics for Leeds and Rennes help to back that up, as he has won 58% of his ground duels in Ligue 1 this season and won 58% of his battles in the Championship last term.

The 29-year-old ace has only started eight times in the French top-flight, completing 91% of his attempted passes with no errors that led to shots for the opposition, but caught the eye as a regular in England in the 2023/24 campaign.

As you can see in the table above, Kamara’s form for Rennes and Leeds shows that he is incredibly secure in possession and rarely gives the ball away, whilst Morsy has made four errors that have directly led to shots this season.

This suggests that the Finnish maestro could offer more quality in possession in comparison to the Ipswich skipper, by using his technical ability to retain the ball for the Blues.

Opposition players also find it harder to get the better of Kamara in midfield, as shown by him winning 58% of his duels and only being dribbled past 15 times last season, which suggests that he could also be an upgrade on Morsy off the ball.

Overall, the former Leeds man has the quality, in and out of possession, to come in and take over Morsy’s role as a regular starter in the middle of the park, which is why the club’s interest in him is bad news for the Ipswich captain, who could find himself on the bench in the second half of the season.

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.