Ipswich Town backed to offload 'superb' £9m ace amid Wrexham, Stoke City & Derby County tug of war | OneFootball

Sammie Szmodics' time at Portman Road appears to be ending

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 have been backed to offload Sammie Szmodics ahead of Monday's transfer deadline amid a tug of war between three of the Tractor Boys' divisional rivals for his signature.

After an initially inconsistent return to the Championship following relegation from the Premier League, the Tractor Boys have started to hit their straps in recent weeks, and are firmly in contention for a return to the top flight for a second time in three seasons.

It has been well-documented that Kieran McKenna has some serious strength-in-depth at his disposal at Portman Road despite the high-profile summer sales of Liam Delap and Omari Hutchinson to Chelsea and Nottingham Forest respectively.

Indeed, the reasoning behind such claims is exemplified when analysing the Northern Irishman's attacking options, particularly in wide areas.

Jaden Philogene has been in inspired form for the Blues this term, although he is currently sidelined with a minor knee injury, whilst Jack Clarke has also delivered several crucial contributions across the campaign.

Ipswich also spent heavily in an attempt to bolster their options on the opposite flank, with a Championship record fee for an incoming being parted with as Sindre Walle Egeli joined from FC Nordsjaelland for £17.5m, whilst a further £12m was spent on Kasey McAteer from Leicester City.

Wes Burns has also made a strong impact since returning from a serious ACL injury in recent weeks, meaning the aforementioned Szmodics has fallen out of favour at Portman Road as a result of those circumstances, as well as injury misfortune.

As such, Football League World's Ipswich Town fan pundit, Adam Wilkin, believes that an exit in the final days of the current window for the 30-year-old is the best course of action for all involved, although he still remained full of praise towards the Republic of Ireland international.

Ipswich Town backed to sell Sammie Szmodics amid Stoke City, Derby County & Wrexham transfer interest

The Tractor Boys spent an outlay of £9m on the playmaker in August 2024 after his stellar previous season with Blackburn Rovers, ending the campaign as the Championship's Golden Boot winner with a total of 27 strikes.

A maiden Premier League stint for Szmodics would prove to be somewhat respectable on an individual level despite initial injury woes and Town's eventual relegation, as he scored four times in 20 league appearances.

However, this season has been a tale of frustration for the experienced figure, starting in approximately half of his overall league appearances due to injury, with a solitary goal ironically coming against Blackburn in the 3-0 success a matter of weeks ago.

It has been reported that Town are open to parting ways with Szmodics in what remains of the window, although Derby County were the first side to see a bid rejected.

They have since been joined in this transfer battle by Stoke City, as well as the ambitious Wrexham, who are said to have offered £5m for the forward, despite claims that Ipswich have set a £6m valuation.

Regardless, Wilkin believes that an eventual deal will be agreed between Ipswich and one of the three clubs.

"It's looking more and more likely that Szmodics will leave, and I'm not against that," he told FLW.

"He's a superb player, but just doesn't fit our system and the way McKenna wants a 'number 10' to play.

"He had his success off the left in the Premier League. But, we've now got Jack Clarke and Jaden Philogene occupying that spot," Wilkin explained.

"I don't know how bad Philogene's injury is, but it seems to be not too awful. It seems as though he (Szmodics) will be the trigger for a potential striker to come in.

"Him leaving would free up that squad place, and I think that's somewhere where we're in much more need of reinforcements.

"I have no doubt he'll be a success wherever he goes. I just don't think he fits our system right now," Wilkin added.

"In terms of fees, I think Derby are rumoured to have bid £3m, we bid £9m, so maybe somewhere in the middle, £5-6m, I think we will be holding out for, given his recent lack of goals and his age."

Sammie Szmodics will hope to reignite his career amid Ipswich Town exit talk

As Wilkin alluded to, Szmodics is still an extremely talented player for any side in the Championship, but it clearly hasn't worked out for him in Town colours.

Due to the aforementioned factors, it isn't the greatest of surprises that a fee of £6m is being commanded by the Tractor Boys, as well as why clubs such as Derby and Wrexham are interested.

The Red Dragons would benefit a lot from Szmodics' versatility and creative nous in a 3-4-2-1 system, whilst John Eustace would hope to spark the playmaker's career back into life, having worked alongside each other for a brief period at Ewood Park.