Ipswich Town urged to be "doing everything" to take contract action on £15k-a-week star | OneFootball

FLW's Ipswich Town expert Adam Wilkin has urged his side to tie Conor Chaplin down to a new contract.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Ipswich Town star Conor Chaplin has entered the final 12 months of his contract, and FLW's Town fan pundit has urged his club to ensure a new contract offer is tabled sooner rather than later.

The Tractor Boys have already lost defenders Cameron Burgess and Axel Tuanzebe on free transfers, as they failed to agree new terms, and will want to avoid this happening with the forward next summer.

Chaplin has been a key figure in Ipswich's rise to the summit of English football in the last two years, proving to be a prolific goal threat but ultimately struggling to translate that form into the Premier League.

Now back in the Championship where he's already proven his worth, the £15k-a-week man will want to have another prolific season, and earn the opportunity to prove his mettle in the top flight.

Ipswich Town urged to tie down Conor Chaplin to a new contract

To get an expert opinion on what the future at Portman Road may look like for Chaplin, Football League World spoke to our resident Ipswich fan pundit, Adam Wilkin, quizzing him on whether a new deal should be presented to the 28-year-old.

Adam responded: "Given what we've just seen happen with the Cameron Burgess and Axel Tuanzebe contracts, I think they should be doing everything they can to tie Conor Chaplin down to at least another two years.

"I think he didn't really get given a chance in the Premier League. He lost his place at the start, but then started coming into it, and coming into a bit of form and actually looking really handy in the Premier League, before he got a nasty little injury.

"He was coming back towards the end of the season. He played the last three or four matches for us, [but] he wasn't at his best there.

"I think it's important not to lose him on a free, but I also think it's important to keep him around this season because he's a clinical goalscorer at Championship level," he concluded.

Championship reset could be perfect for Chaplin

As Adam mentioned, Chaplin suffered injury issues last term, which saw him play a less important role in Kieran McKenna's side than he had done in recent years.

The Ipswich expert expanded on this point, saying: "He also knows the structure of the team, he knows how they play, and if you keep him fit with the array of talent around him as well, supporting him this season that was invested in last year, he could get another 15–20 goals potentially.

"He'll be hungry to prove that he can do it in the Premier League. I think if it wasn't for his injury, I would've been interested to see how he did get on because I think that natural goalscorer, other than Delap's goals, was something that we missed.

"So yeah, I'd be tying him down to another contract if it was me."

A year back in the Championship could be great for Chaplin as he looks to find his form again, following a tough season in the top flight with injuries.

If he remains fully fit, the 28-year-old could go on and replicate the numbers that he notched in the Championship last time (13 goals in 44 appearances), and would put himself in a great position for a Premier League return with Ipswich, or another club.