Ipswich should plot move for Bristol City loan star - It makes perfect sense | OneFootball

Ipswich Town should look to sign Bristol City loanee Radek Vitek from Manchester United this summer

Ipswich Town's attentions will have swiftly switched to the summer transfer window following the confirmation of their promotion, as Kieran McKenna will almost certainly be drawing up his shortlist of potential targets.

Following relegation from the top-flight 12 months ago, Ipswich have put that heartache behind them and bounced back at the first time of asking, albeit it wasn't as convincing as many would have thought.

The Tractor Boys, by most accounts, have one of, if not the strongest sides on paper, with Dara O'Shea and Jacob Greaves in defence, Azor Matusiwa and Dan Neil in the middle, and Jaden Philogene, Jack Clarke, and Marcelino Nunez in attack, and that's without touching on the Championship record signing Sindre Walle Egeli.

However, football isn't played on paper, and it took McKenna's side until the final day to confirm their fate, with a 3-0 victory over Queens Park Rangers sealing their place in the top-flight for next year.

The Northern Irish boss will be keen to get his summer underway after the confirmation that Cedric Kipre's and Chuba Akpom's loan deals are becoming permanent, and should seek to make an upgrade between the sticks as a priority.

Christian Walton has displaced Alex Palmer between the sticks at Portman Road this season, but McKenna will almost certainly be looking to make an upgrade in the coming months, and should look to snap up one of the Championship's best performers this year.

Ipswich Town should look to sign Radek Vitek this summer after an excellent Bristol City loan spell

Bristol City signed Radek Vitek in the summer on loan from Manchester United, with the Czechian making the jump to the Championship for the first time following previous loan spells with Accrington Stanley in League Two and then in the Austrian top-flight with Blau-Weiss Linz.

Vitek joined with little known about him, and at 22, he was instantly made first choice by Gerhard Struber ahead of Max O'Leary, with the Irishman then subsequently heading to West Bromwich Albion in January following Vitek nailing down his spot between the sticks at Ashton Gate.

The Robins have gone on to achieve a 12th-placed finish in the league, which, whilst it is a step backwards compared to last season's 6th-placed finish, is still a solid campaign for the Robins.

Struber would lose his place in the Ashton Gate technical area in March, and was replaced by Roy Hodgson until the end of the season, with the veteran boss having a glowing reference about Vitek shortly after joining, saying: "I have only watched our players for two games, so I have to be careful what I say, but from what I have seen Radek has all the attributes to be a Premier League goalkeeper.

Certainly, for someone as experienced as Hodgson, with over 400 Premier League games managed in his career, it's high praise from a short sample size, but it doesn't go without merit.

According to FotMob, only Coventry's Carl Rushworth, Ipswich's Christian Walton, and Derby County's Jacob Widell Zetterstrom have prevented more goals than Vitek's 5.4 across the campaign, ranking him statistically as one of the league's finest in that regard.

Still only 22, Vitek has some of his best years ahead of him, and would provide excellent competition for Walton, who is eight years his senior, at Portman Road.

Manchester United have reportedly slapped a price tag of around £10 million on Vitek, which, given his age, his performances, and his potential, is an absolute steal, and you would imagine a whole host of clubs will be lining up to make a move this summer.

McKenna previously worked at United as a coach before taking the Ipswich job, and will be acutely aware of Vitek, with their paths having almost certainly crossed before, and the Northern Irishman should use his connections to make a move for the Czech in the coming months, as they prepare to make the jump to the Premier League once again.

Kieran McKenna should use his Manchester United connections to complete Radek Vitek swoop

McKenna spent over five years as a coach at Manchester United between August 2016 and November 2021, before taking his first job as a head coach in first-team football with Ipswich.

With three promotions in four full years since, it would be fair to suggest that he hasn't done a bad job, and Ipswich fans should have every faith in the 39-year-old to finally establish the Tractor Boys as a Premier League club next year.

Although Walton has performed admirably since coming back into the side, at 30, whether he can make the jump to the top flight at this stage of his career remains to be seen.

For just £10 million, Vitek should be a no-brainer option for McKenna, with the 22-year-old showing all the hallmarks of becoming a solid Premier League keeper almost instantly despite his age.

The Northern Irishman should use his connections to his advantage and get this deal over the line as soon as possible to kick off their summer.