Jaden Philogene, a winger for Aston Villa, has agreed to a £20 million contract with Ipswich Town.

The 22-year-old’s brief six-month homecoming to Villa Park will come to an end when he has a medical at Portman Road.Philogene also attracted interest from Europe, especially La Liga, but Ipswich is eventually going to give up on the England Under-21 international, thanks in large part to the influence of manager Kieran McKenna.

Europe, particularly La Liga, expressed interest in Philogene as well, although Ipswich will ultimately give up on the England Under-21 player, largely due to manager Kieran McKenna’s influence.

Because Villa had a 30% sell-on clause in the contract, Hull received roughly £13.5 million. He only made four starts, including a Champions League match against Bayern Munich, and eleven substitute appearances after deciding to return to Unai Emery’s team.

Last summer, Philogene was eager to work with McKenna, but Ipswich persisted in their desire and has now persuaded him to relocate to Suffolk.

In their fight for survival, the Tractor Boys, now ranked 18th in the Premier League, are trying to bolster their roster. They have already brought in defender Ben Godfrey on loan from Atalanta.

 

Ipswich Town will host Bristol Rovers at Portman Road for a third-round match on Sunday afternoon in an attempt to move past their embarrassing FA Cup performance from 2024. Last time out, the Tractor Boys shared the spoils with Fulham at Craven Cottage, while the Gas secured a much-needed League One win after a management change.

Ipswich Town had a terrible afternoon at Portman Road in the fourth round of the FA Cup last season, losing 2-1 to National League South team Maidstone United, despite having had two incredibly successful seasons during which they were promoted from League One to the Premier League.

Kieran McKenna’s team is fighting hard to escape an immediate return to the pressures of the Championship, so naturally, the Tractor Boys’ primary attention has been on their first top-flight season in twenty years, even if they will be anxious to prevent a similar upset this Sunday.

After suffering back-to-back losses to Newcastle United and Arsenal, Ipswich has recovered to end their holiday program with four points from two top-flight matches at Craven Cottage against Chelsea, led by Enzo Maresca, and Fulham, another West London rival.

After suffering back-to-back losses to Newcastle United and Arsenal, Ipswich has recovered to end their holiday program with four points from two top-flight matches at Craven Cottage against Chelsea, led by Enzo Maresca, and Fulham, another West London rival.

Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap put the Tractor Boys ahead at Craven Cottage last time out thanks to a strike connection that was formed in the Championship. However, two penalties from Raul Jimenez forced a sharing of the league points on a rainy afternoon in the capital.

With four points from their last two games, McKenna’s team enters its FA Cup-style break in 18th place in the Premier League rankings, 10 points ahead of undefeated Southampton and tied for 17th place with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The West Country team fought to a much-needed 1-0 victory at the home of relegation-threatened Cambridge United, and Bristol Rovers enjoyed maximum points from a League One match last time out for the first time in a new era under the leadership of forward-thinking Spaniard Inigo Calderon.

The Gas defeated the U’s to end a seven-game losing streak in the third division that had started in November. Winger Luke Thomas’s first league goal of the 2024–25 season proved to be the game-winning goal in a contest between two struggling teams.

In an attempt to pull away from the bottom four of the League One standings, Bristol Rovers fired former manager Matt Taylor in mid-December. However, a challenging holiday season has left Calderon’s team in 20th place, five pointsahead of Crawley Town in 21st.

Finding the back of the net has been a major problem for the Gas this season, as they have only scored 22 goals in 24 third-tier games. This situation may get worse in light of the news that star striker Promise Omochere has suffered a serious hamstring injury.

Much like the first transfer window Ipswich Town found themselves involved in after promotion, this January window looks set to be a busy one for the relegation-threatened side. After all, this drawn-out month gives them a fantastic opportunity to recruit fresh blood that can help in their ongoing quest to stay put in the Premier League.

Already, Ipswich have signed Ben Godfrey on a loan deal to bolster defensively, with rumours now focusing in on the exciting Suffolk side adding in more firepower up top.

It looks as if Godfrey won’t be the only confirmed signing this early into January either, with Jaden Philogene reportedly joining the building for a £20m fee from Aston Villa to gift McKenna’s men a daring option down the right wing.

Ipswich aren’t done there, however, with the Premier League minnows remaining in the search for Middlesbrough sharp shooter Emmanuel Latte Lath, despite GIVEMESPORT previously disclosing that Leeds United are out in front in seeking to land the clinical Ivorian

The Whites are now considering lodging a £15m bid to try and win the Boro number nine, but Ipswich won’t be fazed by this new development, hoping that the allure of top-flight football could sway Latte Lath into calling Portman Road his next home before the February deadline is up. Latte Lath could well strike up a devastating attacking duo with Philogene if a deal is reached, with the tricky winger a superstar in the Championship with Hull City last season, and will now be ready – like his Boro counterpart – to now take the division above by storm.

The Tractor Boys would get a better deal with Latte Lath because he is already a strong attacker in the English game, even though Ipswich might spend the money carelessly on Igor Jesus to go from Botafogo for £30 million.

It would all depend though on whether or not the 26-year-old would be able to handle the step-up, but when you glance at his goalscoring numbers in the EFL to date.

26 of Latte Lath’s strikes for Michael Carrick’s men have come in the bread and butter of the second tier, with ten league goals coming his way this 2024/25 so far to alert teams to his services. Jesus, meanwhile, has scored just eight times in 31 games for his current side, while there is less risk involved in Latte Lath’s signing considering his lesser price tag, and his blistering numbers to date playing on English shores means he could settle in well to McKenna’s group as another option away from Liam Delap just leading the line.

Equally, as indicated above, Latte Lath also comes out on top with regard to goals per 90, while he also seemingly offers a great physical presence as the first line of defence, as showcased by his superior record with tackles, interceptions and aerial duels won.

With the pair operating in comparable quality leagues – with the Championship and Brazilian Serie A listed among the ‘next 14 competitions’, outside of Europe’s top five leagues – it does demonstrate exactly what an upgrade the Boro man would be over his Botafogo counterpart

Likewise, Philogene will pray he finally gets his chance to impress in the big-time at Ipswich, having been used infrequently by Unai Emery at Villa Park. Indeed, the ex-Hull ace has only been thrown in from the start in league action this season two times, despite setting the second tier alight last campaign at the Tigers

There was, of course, this outrageous strike that went viral for looping over the Rotherham United goalkeeper’s head, with Philogene registering 12 goals and six assists overall in the Championship.

With a spot down the right wing more open, owing to Wes Burns being the only fit option currently, the reserve Villa figure could become a main spark in the first team when making the switch to Suffolk.

Latte Lath – who was once described as being a “dream to play with” by Boro teammate Luke Ayling – will hope his fair share of first-team opportunities comes about if he joins, with the pair potentially making Ipswich even more threatening in attack ahead of tough games to follow near the foot of the league.

 

Aston Villa have reached an agreement with Ipswich Town for the transfer of winger Jaden Philogene in a deal worth £21 million plus add-ons, according to Fabrizio Romano.

 

The 22-year-old was also attracting serious interest from Everton, who revived their interest after missing out on him last summer.

 

They were one of three clubs, alongside Ipswich, in a transfer tug-of-war for the talented winger last summer before he decided to return to Villa from Hull City.

 

 

The Toffees are now set to suffer back-to-back setbacks in their pursuit of the former England Under-21 international, who has decided to join Ipswich from Villa after speaking with manager Kieran McKenna.

 

Romano reports that Philogene will undergo a medical on Thursday ahead of his move to Portsman Road Stadium.

 

Philogene came through the youth ranks at Villa, and his imminent exit would draw his second stint at his boyhood club to a premature end.

 

The winger returned to Villa Park just six months ago on a five-year deal from Hull, a move that saw Villa outbid Ipswich after Hull granted them the right to match any offers.

 

Despite rejoining with high hopes, Philogene has struggled to leave a lasting impression on Villa manager Unai Emery and has fallen below in the pecking order.

 

He has featured 15 times for Villa across all competitions this season, including just two Premier League starts, without registering a goal or assist.

 

He was left out of December squads for games against Nottingham Forest and Manchester City, which put the final nail in his ill-advised homecoming.

 

Ipswich will hope the talented winger can rediscover his form as they aim to secure Premier League survival.

 

Meanwhile, Philogene’s exit paves the way for Villa to ramp up their efforts to sign Borussia Dortmund winger Donyell Malen.

 

They’ve already seen a £15m bid turned down by the Bundesliga side, who are holding out for a fee closer to £25m, although Malen is reportedly keen to make the switch to Villa Park this month.

 

 

 

Don Goodman believes that Emmanuel Lath wouldn’t break into the Ipswich Town starting team, so he should remain at Middlesbrough this month before reassessing his options in the summer.

 

The Boro striker has been linked with a number of clubs this month, with the likes of Ipswich Town, Leeds United, Leicester City and West Ham United all keen on the 26-year-old.

 

Middlesbrough will hope West Ham, Graham Potter talk becomes a reality

Ipswich have been keen on Latte Lath since the summer, with Boro rejecting a £20million offer from the Tractor Boys towards the end of the transfer window, but they’re still keen on bringing him to Portman Road this month.

 

 

However, Goodman believes that Latte Lath should snub a move to Suffolk this month, and instead concentrate on trying to win promotion with Boro before reassessing the situation in the summer.

 

Don Goodman on Ipswich Town’s interest in Emmanuel Latte Lath

don goodman

Sky Sports pundit Goodman believes the impressive form of Liam Delap at Ipswich means that Latte Lath wouldn’t feature regularly for the Tractor Boys, and pointed to the example of Gus Hamer at Sheffield United about moving to a Premier League club only to get relegated immediately.

 

Speaking via Plemjo.com, Goodman said: “Emmanuel Latte Lath wouldn’t get a game at Ipswich Town, let’s get it right. He’s not going to oust Liam Delap, who is flying, so unless he’d be happy playing an impact role from the bench, there would be no benefit in that move.

 

“Boro frustrate the hell out of me defensively, but Latte Lath must love playing in that team with all the chances they create.

 

“I’d recommend Emmanuel Latte Lath stays at Middlesbrough, enjoy playing under Michael Carrick and focus on having a strong second-half of the season. He can then re-assess options in the summer if Boro don’t go up.

 

“If it were an option, and he decided to join Ipswich, he’d be risking what happened to Gus Hamer, who joined Sheffield United when they were always going to be fighting relegation from the Premier League. It was a fight they lost, and he’s now back in the Championship, despite being too good for that level, in my opinion, and that is what Emmanuel Latte Lath needs to be mindful of.”

 

Emmanuel Latte Lath should relish the chance to reach the Premier League with Boro

Middlesbrough’s Emmanuel Latte Lath v West Brom

If Latte Lath leaves Boro, there’s no guarantee that he would start regularly, as Goodman alluded to, and his best chance of being a Premier League starter could be winning promotion with his current club.

 

Boro are in the play-off places and Latte Lath is playing well, so there’s no reason why he couldn’t fire them to the Premier League.

 

Championship table

 

Position

 

Club

 

P

 

GD

 

Pts

 

1st

 

Leeds United

 

26

 

29

 

53

 

2nd

 

Burnley

 

26

 

22

 

52

 

3rd

 

Sheffield United

 

26

 

19

 

52

 

4th

 

Sunderland

 

26

 

17

 

50

 

5th

 

Middlesbrough

 

26

 

11

 

41

 

6th

 

West Brom

 

26

 

11

 

40

 

If the Ivorian striker keeps scoring, but his side miss out on promotion, he’d undoubtedly have suitors in the summer, and it may be better to wait until the summer where he’s got time to fully weigh up all the options on the table before deciding what to do.

 

Moving in January is always a risk, particularly when there’s no guarantee that he’ll hit the ground running at his new club, and he should be looking to make it to the Premier League with Boro.

 

Goodman is right about Delap’s form at Ipswich, and it’s difficult to see Latte Lath forcing him out of the squad, so the smart option could be to stay put at the Riverside Stadium for now and see what happens in the summer.

 

 

Ipswich Town have shown in their last two Premier League outings that there’s plenty of fight in their camp, with an unexpected home win against Chelsea being followed up with a battling 2-2 draw away at Fulham.

 

 

 

That draw at Craven Cottage might well have been all three points on another day if Leif Davis hadn’t clattered into Raul Jimenez for the home side’s equaliser, but a share of the spoils was still a positive result for Kieran McKenna’s men to take back to Suffolk come full-time.

 

Sam-Morsy-Ipswich

Yet, McKenna and Co won’t be resting on their laurels as they do find themselves submerged in the bottom three still on goal difference, meaning this month’s busy transfer window could come in handy in boosting the underdogs’ chances of survival.

 

Who Ipswich could sign in January

Whilst there has been significant talk this January that Liam Delap could up and leave the relegation-threatened outfit, there have also been plenty of rumours linking Ipswich with some notable incomings.

 

 

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

 

One recent report from journalist Alan Nixon suggests that the Tractor Boys would be willing to fork out £30m to win Botafogo striker Igor Jesus’ services this month, with Everton also reportedly keen near the foot of the division.

 

Whilst this could look like Ipswich are preparing for the worst regarding Delap’s fate, Jesus’ arrival would make sense as they aim to boost McKenna’s options up top, away from George Hirst and Ali Al-Hamadi already at Portman Road.

 

Botafogo-Igor-Jesus

What Jesus could offer Ipswich

With reports linking the Tractor Boys with a move for Liverpool’s exciting young winger Ben Doak alongside the expensive South American, this could be a duo made in heaven as far as McKenna is concerned.

 

Indeed, Doak has set the Championship alight so far this season on loan from Liverpool, with two goals and six assists standing out from his league numbers to date at Middlesbrough, alongside his ability to twist and turn defences with slaloming solo surges up the pitch.

 

Capable of playing down either wing, McKenna might well believe the Scotsman could become his new Omari Hutchinson if he can get his hands on him, having managed to get ten goals and six assists out of the ex-Chelsea man down a division before letting him loose on the Premier League.

 

Jesus’ career goal record by club

 

Club played for

 

Games played

 

Goals scored

 

Botafogo

 

31

 

8

 

Shabab Al-Ahli

 

 

 

 

 

Sourced by Transfermarkt

 

Whilst Doak would undoubtedly boost the Tractor Boys in midfield, with Wes Burns the only recognised option down the right owing to injuries, Jesus would also come in and give McKenna another option he could fall back on if Delap is having a rare off-day with some impressive numbers, notably at Shabab Al-Ahli.

 

Football journalist Zach Lowy even described the Brazilian’s heroics as “incredible” across 2024, with his rich vain of form in front of goal playing out in the Middle East seeing him win an international call-up.

 

Both players entering the building this January could well give McKenna the depth he craves in attack, and would make the Tractor Boys even more of a threatening prospect going forward to try and surprise more teams in their ongoing bid to beat the drop. The thought of the two linking up in attack should also be a salivating prospect for the masses at Portman Road.

 

Ben Doak in action for Middlesbrough

Whilst it would be risky to fork out £30m on an unknown entity in the English game, Ipswich never looked back after splashing £20m on Delap who had never cut his teeth in the Premier League prior, with the hope this wild buy – alongside the added energy of Doak – can help the Suffolk side survive against all the odds.

 

 

 

Everton are in desperate need of January additions.

 

Everton have been well off the pace this season and are languishing just two points above the relegation zone.

 

Team MP W D L GD Pts

14 West Ham 20 6 5 9 -15 23

15 Crystal Palace 20 4 9 7 -7 21

16 Everton 19 3 8 8 -10 17

17 Wolves 20 4 5 11 -11 17

18 Ipswich 20 3 7 10 -15 16

Sean Dyche’s men suffered a 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth on the weekend which marked their 11th game of the season in which they have failed to score.

 

Only relegation favourites Southampton have scored fewer goals than Everton’s 15, so it’s evident attacking reinforcements are needed.

 

A striker appears to be top of their transfer shortlist as Evan Ferguson has been linked to Goodison Park this winter.

 

And, the Toffees are also keeping tabs on a Brazilian striker who Ipswich Town are now ready to spend big on.

 

Igor Jesus of Botafogo celebrates with winner’s medal after the Copa CONMEBOL Libertadores 2024 Final between Atletico Mineiro and Botafogo at Esta…

 

Ipswich ready to spend £30m on Everton-linked Igor Jesus

Everton made contact to sign Botafogo striker Igor Jesus last month as they carried out due diligence on the feasibility of the transfer.

 

 

The Brazillian forward was also attracting interest from Nottingham Forest and Wolves at the time, but it’s now Ipswich Town who are in pole position.

 

That’s according to Alan Nixon, who claims the newly promoted side are willing to pay £30m to land Jesus’ signature.

 

It’s thought the 23-year-old striker is keen to make a move to the Premier League and would consider the relegation favourites Ipswich.

 

It seems Everton are the more attrative option for Jesus if they were to stump up the cash.

 

Everton should go for Evan Ferguson instead

Everton can’t afford to take risks this winter. They simply have to get it right in order to retain their Premier League status ahead of the stadium move in the summer.

 

Signing Evan Ferguson would be a much safer option for Dyche and it’d allow also funds to be spent elsewhere, given he’d likely join on loan.

 

Jesus is expected to cost in the region of £30m, so clearly he represents a massive gamble considering he was playing in the UAE last year.

 

Ipswich Town opened their 2025 account in the Premier League with a hotly contested 2-2 draw away at Fulham, with a staggering three penalties across the course of the thrilling 90 minutes.

 

If it wasn’t for Raul Jimenez’s second spot-kick of the day – which was awarded deep into added time – the Tractor Boys would have been boasting back-to-back wins in the top flight, which is an unheard-of feat for the newly promoted side.

 

 

Yet, that precious win would frustratingly slip through their fingers to now leave them in the relegation spaces on goal difference, but Liam Delap could certainly come off the pitch proud of his efforts again.

 

Top Ipswich performers at Fulham

Delap would confidently tuck away his side’s only penalty of the game after Sammie Szmodics’ first-half opener, with the ex-Manchester City striker making sure he leapt for joy when celebrating with the away end after his effort beat Bernd Leno.

 

He must have been fully expecting that to be enough to gift his side another well-needed three points after he had originally won the penalty via a tricky surge into the danger area, only for it not to be that way.

 

Away from just Delap, Szmodics also deserves plenty of credit for being in the right place at the right time to fire his side ahead courtesy of a generous deflection, whilst Nathan Broadhead also impressed going forward with four successful dribbles tallied up.

 

Even the Tractor Boys defence stood firm for most of the contest, as Jacob Greaves won four duels in the heart of the back five, but there was one notable underperformer for Kieran McKenna’s men who let his side down with an often reckless display.

 

FFC Performance in Numbers

Sam Morsy’s numbers vs Fulham

It was the Ipswich captain who gave the Cottagers their first way back into the enthralling contest from the spot after a cynical foul from the Egyptian on an advancing Harry Wilson was initially waved away by the referee, only for VAR to intervene.

 

 

That was the tale of Sam Morsy’s game throughout, with the ageing midfielder winning just two of his seven duels on the day as a rash individual in the middle, meaning he lost out on 71% of his duels in total.

 

Morsy’s performance in number

Although the usually dependable 33-year-old did misplace just two of his 33 passes on the day, his calmness with the ball at his feet wasn’t present in every aspect of his showing at Craven Cottage, with three fouls given up across his topsy-turvy 90 minutes, on top of allowing himself to be dribbled past two times when the hosts broke forward with pace to burn.

 

Unfortunately for the Tractor Boys stalwart, this isn’t the only time he has looked off the pace of the game in recent matches, with just two duels also won at Molineux back in December, but that display was ultimately forgiven as a jubilant 2-1 victory was served up come full-time.

 

 

McKenna will know he cannot have Morsy be this overzealous in games to come, with the former Manchester United coach no doubt also having a word with Leif Davis, who saw his own tenacity get the better of him too when clattering into Jimenez at the death.

 

Of course, the Ipswich boss will want committed displays all-round, but if it wasn’t for Delap delivering the goods once more, faces such as Morsy could have cost the Premier League underdogs even more dearly in West London.