Sky Sports: Ipswich Town exploring move for £95,000-p/w ace with Philogene

Ipswich Town are now exploring a shock move to sign a new face who Pep Guardiola once heralded as “oustanding” this month, a fresh report has revealed.

Ipswich Town transfer news

Currently sitting 18th in the Premier League, Ipswich Town are expected to be busy this January as they look to hand Kieran McKenna players of capable of helping the East Anglian outfit avoid an immediate return to the Championship.

The Tractor Boys have already signed defender Ben Godfrey on loan from Atalanta, and are in the final stages of a deal to sign Jaden Philogene in a deal potentially worth in excess of £20m.

Philogene, who has been a long term target of McKenna’s, is expected to arrive in the coming days in a bid to add more firepower to Ipswich’s attack, with McKenna’s side having managed just 20 goals so far this campaign, the third fewest in the top flight.

It follows the club failing in their pursuit of Liverpool loanee Ben Doak, who they tabled a £16m offer to sign in the opening days of the transfer window.

They are keen to add yet more firepower too, amid links to both former Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho and Brazilian forward Igor Jesus, while they have also been long term admirers of Middlesbrough striker Emmanuel Latte Lath, all of whom would provide cover and competition to current star man Liam Delap, who leads their goalscoring charts this campaign.

But they also need to add more cover in midfield, and to that end they have begun exploring a shock move.

Ipswich Town exploring Matic move

That comes as Sky Sports reporter Florian Plettenberg reveals that Ipswich and McKenna are now “exploring” a move to sign three-time Premier League winner Nemanja Matic from Lyon this January as they look to bolster their ranks.

Now 36 years old, Matic would bring a wealth of experience to East Anglia, having appeared over 250 times in the English top flight across spells with Chelsea and Manchester United.

And Plettenberg and Sky claim that Ipswich are now exploring a deal alongside several other sides around Europe, with McKenna knowing Matic well from their time working together at Manchester United under Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Questions will likely be asked about his mobility, but it was just five years ago that he was the subject of effusive praise from legendary coach Pep Guardiola. “Matic is an outstanding player,” he told the media after a Manchester Derby in 2020.

The exact details of any potential deal remain unclear, but with Matic still having 18 months left to run on his £95,000 a week deal in France, a loan is unlikely, with the 6ft 3 ace having started 12 of the 14 games that he has been available for in Ligue 1 this campaign.

With top-flight experience clearly a key attribute in most of Ipswich’s targets so far this winter, Matic would certainly bring plenty of that. But, with a midfield that already struggles for mobility with Kalvin Phillips and Sam Morsy, would adding a 36-year-old Matic be a good idea?