TWO or three players are set to depart Portman Road this week now that they can leave under the emergency loan deal system that comes into operation today.

Elvin King

By Elvin King

TWO or three players are set to depart Portman Road this week now that they can leave under the emergency loan deal system that comes into operation today.

Ipswich Town chief executive Simon Clegg has confirmed this, and when training resumes today after a weekend break a number of established Blues stars will be half expecting a visit to manager Roy Keane's office at the club's Playford Road training ground.

Having spent almost �5million on the signatures of Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards from Sunderland - and having the wages of Reading loanee Leroy Rosenior also now on the books - Keane will be expected to reduce his player budget.

The likes of Owen Garvan (Burnley), David Wright (Reading), Jon Stead (Sheffield Wednesday), and Gareth McAuley (Middlesbrough) have already been linked with other clubs, but the 'available' list does not stop there and even the likes of Jon Walters, Pablo Counago and Alan Quinn could have 'bids' considered.

“If players want to be playing football we'd rather have them out there doing that rather than having them taking up wages here,” confirmed Clegg.

“It's very much a possibility that players could be leaving us this week.

“We held a number of reasonably advanced discussions about a couple of players going before the transfer window closed last Tuesday.”

While shipping players out is the biggest current priority after the arrival of Leadbitter, Edwards and Rosenior, Keane has not shut the door on boosting his quest to lift the Blues up the Championship table even further.

He said: “As much as you would prefer to have players who you know are going to be here for two or three years, the loan market has to be explored.

“The big clubs might be considering loaning out some of their young players and we have done well in that respect with Jack Colback from Sunderland, and we are aware that we have to keep our options open.

“But if players have worked hard to become Premier League squad members you can understand a reluctance to drop down.

“They will still feel they can do a job and just need a break to bring this about.”

Ipswich are still being linked with Sunderland strikers David Healy and Daryl Murphy, while Keane has his eyes on a number of others.

Town return to action after the international break on Saturday with a visit to relegated Middlesbrough, and three days later they entertain Nottingham Forest in a fixture that Keane will be keeping his fingers crossed with provide a tonic to Portman Road regulars.

elvin.king@archant.co.uk