Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna(Image credit: Getty Images)Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterFour Four TwoGet the FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member features.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.You are now subscribedYour newsletter sign-up was successfulWant to add more newsletters?Five times a weekFourFourTwo DailyFantastic football content straight to your inbox! From the latest transfer news, quizzes, videos, features and interviews with the biggest names in the game, plus lots more.Signup +Once a week...And its LIVE!Sign up to our FREE live football newsletter, tracking all of the biggest games available to watch on the device of your choice. Never miss a kick-off!Signup +Join the clubGet full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in.Subscribe to our newsletterIpswich Town are winless in their last two Championship fixtures but allowed a proven second-tier striker to join the team immediately outside the play-off places.Despite their recent dip, Ipswich are one of the teams responsible for the pressure thats piling up on Championship leaders Coventry City. Middlesbrough have drawn level on points with the Sky Blues and Hull City are four points behind, but Ipswich have directly taken six points from Frank Lampards side.The Tractor Boys put five past Coventry without reply in their two league meetings this season. Only the leaders have scored more Championship goals, so it was perhaps not surprising that the Suffolk team were willing to trim some attacking depth in January.You may likeFrank Lampard and Championship leaders Coventry City are facing a new kind of pressure in the Premier League promotion chaseOxford United need quality and character to secure a third season in the Championship and winning at home is the perfect springboard'Theres a feeling of togetherness at Coventry. The challenge now is whether we can take that forward and improve even more' Frank Lampard names best pound-for-pound signing he's made amidst Premier League promotion pushSzmodics loan not a football decision30-year-old Sammie Szmodics is a known quantity at Championship level. He scored 27 league goals for Blackburn Rovers in 2023-24, which persuaded promoted Ipswich to take him to Portman Road and into the Premier League.Hes only scored once in his limited playing time in the second division this season and was permitted to reunite with former Rovers manager John Eustace with a loan to Derby County seventh in the table and only six points behind Ipswich for the rest of the season.A post shared by Derby County Football Club (@dcfcofficial)A photo posted by on Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna was asked about the future of Szmodics when he spoke to the media before the two teams meet at Pride Park on Saturday.Well see what the summer brings, said McKenna, as reported by the East Anglian Daily Times.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.[Szmodics] had two big injuries in the calendar year of 2025, both with complicated recoveries that have held him back a little bit. So there's obvious football things there.But in the end it wasn't a football decision, it wasn't related to his football performance. It was a decision that was made in the best interests of our group dynamic, of our dressing room culture, of the values of our dressing room and of our team.McKenna was keen to reiterate that the decision was made in the interests of Ipswich, despite the understandable perception that the loan deal risks strengthening a direct league rival.You may likeFrank Lampard and Championship leaders Coventry City are facing a new kind of pressure in the Premier League promotion chaseOxford United need quality and character to secure a third season in the Championship and winning at home is the perfect springboard'Theres a feeling of togetherness at Coventry. The challenge now is whether we can take that forward and improve even more' Frank Lampard names best pound-for-pound signing he's made amidst Premier League promotion pushPerhaps hinting at some unrest behind-the-scenes, McKenna didnt hold back when confirming Ipswichs motivation for the move.The decision was made that it was best that Sammie wouldn't be with us for the rest of the season, added McKenna.There was a possibility of that being on a permanent transfer but when there wasn't a suitable offer it was still considered that it was the best for him not to be here this season.Ipswich visit Derby in a lunchtime kick-off in the Championship on Saturday.With Coventry and Hull playing later in the day, Middlesbrough not playing until Monday night and Ipswich still holding a game in hand, its a chance to make the teams above them sweat before they even take the field.TOPICSSammie SzmodicsIpswich TownDerby CountyChampionshipChris NeeChris is a Warwickshire-based freelance writer, Editor-in-Chief of AVillaFan.com, author of the High Protein Beef Paste football newsletter and owner of Aston Villa Review. He supports Northern Premier League Midlands Division club Coventry Sphinx.
