Ipswich must finally drop the flop who McKenna was “very happy” to sign.
Ipswich Town, unlike Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers, will stick with their manager for the foreseeable, as Kieran McKenna continues to coax a tune out of his players deep into a relegation battle.
Last time out, the Tractor Boys placed the final nail in the coffin of Gary O’Neil’s stay at Molineux, as Jack Taylor’s last-gasp header sealed a win for the away side, leading to the 44-year-old’s expected departure.
Taylor was not the only player in the middle of the park to show out during this thrilling triumph; Jens Cajuste, for example, shone in the holding midfield positions.
Ipswich’s outstanding midfield over Wolves.
Cajuste made his eighth Premier League start against Wolves, which was his best performance since coming in the summer.
The Napoli loanee shown the requisite determination to protect the defense, winning eight duels and completing three tackles. He only misplaced two of his 32 passes that day.
Aside from the Scandinavian impressing in a deep role, both Conor Chaplin and Omari Hutchinson gained a lot of praise at the conclusion of the game for their performances in attack, with Hutchinson in particular giving Wolves defenders headaches with four successful dribbles.
Of course, Jack Clarke came on as a late substitute and made an important contribution, as the left winger’s inch-perfect pass from a corner kick hit Taylor’s head.
While all of these players will be happy with their performances at Molineux, Kalvin Phillips stayed on the bench throughout, as his loan spell with the newly promoted club appears to have come to an end.
The Ipswich star who must depart
The ex-Leeds United player has not played in his team’s previous five Premier League games due to a double booking against Leicester City in November and subsequent injury difficulties.
His absence hasn’t been felt much, with Cajuste and Morsy performing admirably in the victory over Wolves. That may make some wonder if the deal to sign the 29-year-old, who data analyst Ben Mattinson claims has been “struggling mentally and physically” in recent times, was worthwhile.
McKenna signed the out-of-sorts midfielder on a loan contract in August, hoping to bring him back to his Elland Road prime. He was “very happy” to welcome the former England international through the door.
Phillips made an incredible 234 appearances for his boyhood club before Manchester City paid £45 million to sign him.
| Phillips’ PL numbers for Ipswich – 24/25 | |
|---|---|
| Stat – per 90 mins* | Phillips |
| Games played | 7 |
| Goals scored | 0 |
| Assists | 0 |
| Touches* | 53.3 |
| Accurate passes* | 29.6 (81%) |
| Ball recoveries* | 5.0 |
| Total duels won* | 5.1 |
Unfortunately, the new Ipswich number four has yet to impress anyone with his loan efforts, with the stats above quite unimpressive, with zero goals and no assists in seven top-flight games.
Those ball recovery and duels won statistics are encouraging, but McKenna will want more from the battler who was once so tenacious and stylish on the ball under Marcelo Bielsa’s great instruction.
Phillips, who earns £150k a week (some paid by Ipswich), must quickly re-establish himself in his manager’s first-team plans or risk losing his contract.
In a recent tell-all, the 29-year-old admitted that he lost the “fire in his belly” after transferring to Manchester City. He may potentially return to the Etihad in January after another unsuccessful move.
With reports of a possible return to previous club Leeds in the new year, the winter window could be an ideal time to split ways.
Leave a Reply