It is that time of the year again when all 92 league managers are able to re-jig their squad, shipping out the players who are failing to shape up and bringing in replacements who are going to make their squads stronger. Ipswich boss Jim Magilton and his scouting team are busy eyeing up signings that will revitalise the Blues for the second half of the season after an inconsistent first period.

There are a handful of players who are being linked away from the club, largely players who are currently on the fringes of the first team and some being youngsters who are looking unlikely to make an impact at first team level. With finances still incredibly tight at Portman Road any signings Town make will need to be balanced out with a player departure.

Youngster Darryl Knights looks likely to leave his hometown club after a successful trial spell with Scottish Premier League side Falkirk before Christmas. The England Youth international is likely to move permanently to the club with the striker likely to command a nominal fee for his services. Another Academy youngster Oscar Petursson has returned to his native Iceland after a difficult time in Suffolk. His two-year spell has been riddled with wrist problems that have hampered his progress.

More senior players could be on the move in the near future as well with Magilton keen on continuing the shake-up of players that he started at the beginning of the season. The future of Darren Currie is unclear at present with the ‘slow winger’ seemingly set for a permanent move to Coventry City who he had spent time with on loan, but the sacking of Sky Blues boss Micky Adams has put this move into doubt. Long-serving Dutchman Fabian Wilnis appeared to be leaving for a loan spell away from the club in the January window but a broken toe for Jason De Vos has left Magilton with no choice but to keep the veteran on as an able squad player.

One departure which would disappoint the majority of Blues fans is that of Welsh midfielder Gavin Williams. The former West Ham man has been one of Ipswich’s best performers in the last twelve months and is seen as an indispensable part of the team by supporters. However, since going on an unauthorised trip to Amsterdam with a handful of other players, Williams’ relationship with Magilton has frayed somewhat with the Northern Irishman revealing that he would be forced to accept a good offer for Williams’ signature.

Magilton has already made a handful of signings this month with the permanent capture of winger Gary Roberts from Accrington Stanley after a successful loan spell. Roberts failed to make the grade with Premiership side Liverpool as a trainee and has had to force his way through the lower leagues to get his chance again in professional football. David Wright has also arrived from Wigan Athletic in a £200k deal which naturally strengthens the defence with the former Crewe defender being adept in any position across the back four.

The final signing to date was the drawn out saga of Irish midfielder George O’Callaghan’s switch to Portman Road from League of Ireland side Cork City. O’Callaghan has spent three months in Suffolk for an extended trial and negotiations for a permanent deal have continued for around a month with the Ipswich boss unwilling to pay over the odds for the former Port Vale playmaker. Eventually a fee of around £60k was agreed and O’Callaghan will hopefully fit the bill of a goalscoring midfielder that Town have missed since the departure of Tommy Miller to Sunderland.

With loan striker Jon Macken going back to parent club Crystal Palace the Tractor Boys are certainly light in the striking department at present and that is an area which is still be to be addressed in this transfer window. A number of names have been bandied about who fit the bill with the likes of David Healy, Steve Kabba and Andy Bishop mentioned. A regular goalscorer does not come cheaply however and this is the stumbling block that the club faces as they bid to ease the workload on leading goalscorer Alan Lee. Talk of Magilton switching his attention to the continent for a new striker has been rife and it would not be a surprise to see a foreign face arrive through the Portman Road doors. Some supporters have even mentioned the return of former fans favourite Pablo Counago from Spanish second division side Malaga, but this would appear to be rather a pipe dream.

With around a week of the window to go there are still plenty of twists and turns left, but the Ipswich supporters should feel confident that Magilton will bring in the right players at the right price. He has proved with the likes of Alex Bruce, Dan Harding, Gary Roberts and George O’Callaghan that he is capable of finding a bargain to fit the bill and his shrewd transfer dealings will hopefully pay off as the season progresses.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 24th, 2007 at 12:01 pm and is filed under Ipswich Town. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.