Ipswich Town star may hate Anis Mehmeti transfer deal - it's not Jack Clarke | OneFootball

Jack Clarke's place in the Ipswich Town team could come under threat after the arrival of Anis Mehmeti, but Sammie Szmodics may be the real loser.

With just under a week to go until the deadline, Ipswich Town have completed one of the major deals of the January transfer window in the Championship.

Ipswich were one of the biggest spenders in the second tier in the summer following their relegation from the Premier League, with the likes of Darnell Furlong, Azor Matusiwa, Marcelino Nunez, Kasey McAteer and Sindre Walle Egeli all arriving at Portman Road for significant transfer fees.

It took the Tractor Boys' new-look squad some time to gel, but it has been a positive few months for Kieran McKenna's side, who have emerged as serious automatic promotion contenders as they look to bounce back to the top flight at the first attempt.

Ipswich currently sit third in the Championship table and are five points behind second-placed Middlesbrough after their six-game unbeaten run ended with a 3-1 defeat at Sheffield United on Saturday, but they do have a game in hand on the Teesside outfit.

In their previous promotion seasons under McKenna, the Tractor Boys made game-changing January signings to give them a boost for the second half of the campaign, and they will be hoping that winger Anis Mehmeti can have a similar impact following his move from Bristol City.

Anis Mehmeti's Ipswich Town arrival gives Kieran McKenna a serious selection headache

In a deal that will be the envy of many in the Championship, Ipswich signed Mehmeti from Bristol City last week, and as he was entering the final six months of his contract at Ashton Gate, they paid a bargain fee of just £3 million for his services.

Mehmeti scored an impressive nine goals and registered six assists in 31 appearances for the play-off chasing Robins this season before his departure, so he will add plenty of attacking firepower to McKenna's already dangerous front line.

As Mehmeti is predominantly a left-winger, he may be seen as direct competition for Jaden Philogene and Jack Clarke in that position, and some may assume that the latter will be frustrated by the arrival of the 25-year-old.

Clarke has had an outstanding season for the Tractor Boys this season, scoring 11 goals and providing two assists in 28 league appearances, but only 12 of those have come from the start, with McKenna regularly preferring Philogene ahead of the ex-Sunderland man.

With Mehmeti now providing even further depth on the left flank, Clarke may be worried that he could see even less game time in the second half of the season, but it is possible that his team-mate Sammie Szmodics could be the player most impacted by the deal.

Sammie Szmodics may be the real loser of Ipswich Town, Anis Mehmeti deal

After scoring a stunning 33 goals in 48 games for Blackburn Rovers in the 2023-24 season, Szmodics joined Ipswich for a fee of £9 million plus add-ons last summer, but it is fair to say it has not worked out for him at Portman Road so far.

Szmodics scored just four goals in 21 games for the Tractor Boys as they were relegated from the Premier League last season, and despite his previous exploits in the Championship, he has not fared much better this time around.

In Szmodics' defence, he has been plagued by injuries in recent months, but he has struggled to force his way into McKenna's starting line-up when fit, with Marcelino Nunez and Chuba Akpom frequently getting the nod instead.

Szmodics scored his first goal of the season in the 3-0 victory over his former club Blackburn earlier this month, and with Nunez and Akpom both currently sidelined with injury, the 30-year-old would have been hoping for a run in the team over the coming weeks to prove himself.

However, after being handed a rare start, Szmodics was substituted before the hour mark in the defeat at Sheffield United, and Mehmeti's arrival could now put his place under even greater threat as the Albania international was often deployed in a number 10 role at Bristol City prior to his exit.

While Ipswich have no shortage of quality in the wide areas, the number 10 position has been something of a weakness for the Suffolk outfit this season, so McKenna may view Mehmeti as the solution to the problem.

After falling down the pecking order, Szmodics has been linked with a move elsewhere before the end of the January window, with his former Blackburn manager John Eustace said to be keen on a reunion at Derby County.

With Nunez and Akpom both unavailable, it is unlikely that the Tractor Boys would be willing to sanction Szmodics' exit before Monday's transfer deadline, but the signing of Mehmeti could be another blow to his faltering Portman Road career.