Exclusive: Ipswich Town in advanced contract talks with 26-year-old | OneFootball

George Hirst, who became a Scotland international earlier this year, looks close to agreeing a new deal at Portman Road

Ipswich Town are in advanced discussions with striker George Hirst over extending his deal at Portman Road for the foreseeable future, Football League World can exclusively reveal.

The Tractor Boys are preparing to return to the Championship after just one year away in the Premier League, with Kieran McKenna's men being the third and final team to be confirmed as relegated in 2024-25, along with the two clubs they were promoted with a year prior in Leicester City and Southampton.

Town have already cashed in on star striker Liam Delap, who has moved to Chelsea in a £30 million deal after his relegation release clause was triggered, and with little in the way of links to a replacement so far in the summer transfer window, it could give a chance for someone like Hirst to take his spot in the starting 11.

Ipswich Town in talks to extend George Hirst's contract

FLW has exclusively been told that the aforementioned Hirst is in advanced talks to renew his contract at Ipswich Town, having been at the club for two years already.

26-year-old Hirst signed McKenna's side permanently for their eventual promotion-winning 2023-24 Championship season from Leicester City, having previously arrived on loan in the January transfer window of 2023 to bolster their attack for the final few months of the League One season.

Town finished 2nd to Plymouth Argyle at the end of that campaign, and after scoring six goals in 21 league outings for the Suffolk outfit, he was brought in permanently by McKenna on a four-year contract, meaning at the time of writing, he still has two years remaining on his current deal.

Hirst scored seven times for Ipswich in the Championship two seasons ago, and found the back of the net a further three times in the Premier League as he played second-fiddle to Delap for the majority of the season.

Leeds United and Burnley have recently been interested in George Hirst

Fresh off their promotions back to the Premier League in late April, both Leeds United and Burnley were reportedly interested in Hirst in a bid to strengthen their attacking units for the top flight.

That interest looks set to have come to nothing though, with Hirst closing in on a brand-new deal at Portman Road.