Ipswich Town set for super swoop deal for Leicester City defender

Both Ipswich Town and Leicester City have earned promotion to the Premier League following stellar performances throughout the 2023/24 Championship season.

But at the beginning of the campaign, these two clubs had varying expectations due to the fact that the Tractor Boys earned promotion from League One to the second tier in 2022/23, so their first aim would have been to retain their Championship status, while the Foxes were relegated from the Premier League, and were striving for an immediate return to the top-flight.

However, Kieran McKenna’s side exceeded expectations, and achieved the remarkable feat of back-to-back promotions from the third tier to the Premier League, becoming the first side to do so since Southampton in 2012.

Despite the clubs beginning the season in different stead, and having squads which look very different on paper, just one point proved to be the difference between the automatic promotion-winning Tractor Boys, and the title-clinching Foxes.

Given the fact that Enzo Maresca’s side were only relegated in 2023, they still have many players who played for the club in the Premier League, whereas McKenna’s squad is still largely compiled of those who achieved promotion from League One.

Albeit a highly impressive achievement, back-to-back promotions have left the Tractor Boys heading into the Premier League with few squad members who are top-flight experienced, an issue which the club will want to address during the summer transfer window.

Tractor Boys should swoop for Foxes defender Conor Coady

Foxes defender Conor Coady is a centre-back with a vast amount of Premier League experience, earned during his time with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Everton, which would make him an ideal asset for the Tractor Boys.

The 31-year-old was a member of the Wolves side who won promotion to the Premier League during the 2017/18 season, and helped the Molineux outfit finish 7th in the top flight for the two following campaigns.

The Liverpool academy product was also a member of England’s Euro 2021 squad, and made 25 Premier League appearances for Everton during the 2022/23 season, in which he helped the Toffees stave off the threat of relegation.

Many would have thought that upon signing for Maresca’s side last summer, Coady would become a key member of the squad, and would help lead their promotion chasing efforts.

Although the Foxes won the Championship title, such an eventuality did not occur as the former Wolves man made just 12 appearances and eight starts in the second tier.

While his lack of appearances could suggest that the Foxes may be willing to let him leave the King Power Stadium this summer, this is a situation that the Tractor Boys should capitalise on.

The presence of an experienced defender such as Coady could go some way to giving McKenna’s side the tools they need to obtain a somewhat unlikely Premier League survival, just two years after being promoted from League One to the Championship.

Foxes may not want to sell Coady to Tractor Boys

Although it seems clear that Maresca does not rate Coady as highly as fellow central defenders Jannik Vestegaard and Wout Faes, who both made over 40 Championship appearances during the 2023/24 campaign, perhaps the Foxes would not want to sell Coady to the Tractor Boys.

Due to the fact that the King Power Stadium outfit have allegedly fallen short of the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules, a difficult top-flight campaign could be in store, and it is not beyond the realms of possibility that both the Tractor Boys and Foxes could be battling alongside each other to survive in the top-flight.

The Foxes may be reluctant to sell Coady to a potential direct rival, but the Suffolk outfit should try their luck as the 31-year-old does not rank highly among Maresca’s pecking order, and has an ideal amount of Premier League nouse and knowhow.