Ipswich Town backed to seal ‘perfect’ Wes Burns agreement – ‘he’s got unfinished business’ | OneFootball

FLW’s Ipswich Town fan pundit has commented on whether Wes Burns should extend his stay at Portman Road.

Ipswich Town can look forward to Premier League football next season after securing an immediate promotion back to the big time.

Despite the nerves and anxiety surrounding the final day, the Tractor Boys put that to one side and swept away Queens Park Rangers at Portman Road, with strikes from George Hirst, Jaden Philogene and Kasey McAteer securing a comfortable 3-0 victory.

Jubilant scenes rang out at Portman Road following the full-time whistle, with the Suffolk-based outfit hopeful that they can establish themselves as top-flight regulars after their instant relegation from the Premier League once making it back there in 2025.

Of course, Ipswich will be aware how critical their recruitment is this summer to help them achieve their aim of remaining in the top-flight next season, with the addition of top-flight experience crucial to being competitive and getting towards the upper ends of the table.

The Tractor Boys will have to make key decisions on who remains and stays to help the football club succeed at the highest level, while there are some first-team figures who will be hopeful of having their deals extended this summer.

One of those is winger Wes Burns, who’s current deal at Portman Road continues to tick down, with the Welshman set to become a free agent if the club doesn’t extend his terms.

Signed from Fleetwood Town back in 2021 under Paul Cook, Burns’ five-year spell at Ipswich has seen him go all the way from League One into the Premier League, but having the early taste of it ripped away by such a cruel ACL injury, he’s hopeful he can get a second crack at the big time by being offered a new contract.

And speaking to the Ipswich Star, the Welshman has reiterated his desire to remain at Ipswich Town and achieve his career goal of scoring in the Premier League.

Burns said: “Who knows? It's the question that everyone wants answers to. I myself have no idea.

"The club will do what it wants to do, whether that's with me in its plans or me not in the plans. Who knows?

"I'd love to stay. The club's got a massive place in my heart.”

"There's one goal that I've always had throughout my career. I've scored in the Conference, League Two, League One and the Championship, but I never got my goal in the Premier League. I'd love to be able to just tick that last little thing off because it's a little bit of a gripe of mine. I'd love to be able to be given the chance to do so."

With this in mind, FLW’s Ipswich Town fan pundit has commented on whether he would be happy to see Burns extend his stay and play a part in their upcoming top-flight term.

Ipswich Town backed to seal Wes Burns contract extension

Speaking to Football League World, Ipswich Town fan pundit Adam Wilkin believes the club should offer winger Wes Burns a one-year contract extension, believing the attacker has ‘unfinished business’ in the Premier League after his debut term was brought to an untimely end due to an ACL injury.

Adam told FLW: “Wes Burns has become a cult hero. He’s one of the triple promotion heroes and has such an affinity with the club, so it’s hard to balance the emotional decision up against the logical decision.

"But I think Kieran McKenna summed it up the best when he said the choice is Wes’s to make, and it’s his decision that comes first.

“I think, given his age, a one-year deal in the Premier League would probably be perfect for both parties and I would love to see him be in the squad for the next year.

“I think he’s got unfinished business in the Premier League with his injury, but at his age you wouldn’t begrudge him a big-money move somewhere else if it did come up, so it’s one of those.”

Ipswich Town face tricky Wes Burns contract call

From a sentimental perspective, Ipswich Town may be inclined to add another 12 months onto Wes Burns’ contract, who has been such a loyal servant to the club and has his heart set on achieving a personal goal by scoring in the Premier League.

But as a pure footballing decision, the Tractor Boys may be better off offloading Burns, with the quality of the squad needing to be ramped up massively if they are to achieve their aim of surviving back in the top-flight.

There’s no doubt it’s been a tough couple of seasons for Burns, who, after his ACL injury sustained at Liverpool last January, didn’t feature in their following Championship campaign until Boxing Day.

The Welshman has managed to keep himself fit for the majority of the time after, but has rarely played past the 60-minute mark when starting matches.

Plus, at 31, Burns isn’t exactly in the prime of his career, so he may well drop further down the pecking order and not get the ample game-time he desires.

Also, in 18 games prior to his ACL injury in the Premier League, Burns had only contributed one assist and failed to score, so the Tractor Boys may well look at those numbers and think whether they want an unproductive winger on their books at that level.

Football is a harsh business, and based off the stats, you’d suggest Burns doesn’t deserve his contract to be renewed, which would be a devastating blow for the player to take.

But Ipswich have to do what is right for the long-term success of the club, with Burns looking like a player who can thrive in the Championship but not quite make the step-up in class to the Premier League.

If he does end up moving on, then there’ll be plenty of suitors back in the Championship keen to land him on a free transfer, and if he does decide to move back to the second tier, it would be a shrewd addition for any club to get his name on their books.