Rushworth in, Harness out: The dream start to Ipswich Town's summer transfer window | OneFootball

After a 22-year absence, Ipswich Town will return to the Premier League next season having won two consecutive promotions under Kieran McKenna.

The Tractor Boys sealed their long-awaited return to the top flight with a 2-0 win over Huddersfield Town on the final day of the season, and whilst celebrations are still in full flow, attention will soon come to building a squad ready to compete in the Premier League.

Ipswich have largely kept the same group of players throughout their promotions from League One and the Championship, but given the step-up in quality, the club will likely need to recruit this summer.

Promotion to the Premier League means that Ipswich will have money to spend, and it remains to be seen how McKenna will use the money, but you'd have thought he'd recruit shrewdly, unlike some clubs like Nottingham Forest who made 21 summer signings after promotion in 2022 - much to their detriment.

With that in mind, here is how Ipswich Town could make a dream start to their transfer window, both in terms of new signings and departures.

IN - Carl Rushworth

Brighton goalkeeper Carl Rushworth spent the 2023/24 season on loan at Swansea City, and thoroughly impressed in south Wales, winning the club's supporter's player of the year award along with the player's player of the year award.

He impressed so much that Gareth Southgate is reportedly considering including him in England's senior squad for the upcoming Euros this summer.

Rushworth has never made a Premier League appearance, but after EFL loans with Walsall, Lincoln City, and Swansea, the 22-year-old has shown it's only a matter of time before he becomes a top-flight goalkeeper.

Ipswich may well need a goalkeeper this summer with both Vaclav Hladky and Christian Walton out of contract at Portman Road this summer, and despite having no Premier League experience, Rushworth is good enough to start for Ipswich in the top-flight next season.

Even if Hladky was to remain at the club, he may not be the club's starting goalkeeper in the Premier League, and Ipswich could look to upgrade on him this summer.

Rushworth would be a perfect permanent signing for the Tractor Boys, and at 22, he's only likely to get better and could be a mainstay between the sticks for Ipswich for years to come.

The Halifax-born goalkeeper is contracted to Brighton until the summer of 2027, but Ipswich should test the waters with a permanent bid for him this summer and could be able to offer him a starting place in the Premier League, which he perhaps wouldn't get with the Seagulls.

A loan could work as well with Rushworth coming in to provide cover and competition for the number one shirt in the top flight.

OUT - Marcus Harness

Winger Marcus Harness made 34 Championship appearances for Ipswich Town this season but just seven of them were starts and that would likely decrease even further in the Premier League next season.

With that in mind, it probably makes sense to move to the 28-year-old on this summer, with just one year remaining on his deal.

Harness signed a three-year deal at Portman Road in the summer of 2022 when he joined from Portsmouth, but the club were a League One side at the time, and it's fair to say that they've come a long way in the two years that he has been at the club.

The winger has been a good squad player for Kieran McKenna this season, but he's probably not Premier League standard, and the club could be better off cashing in on him this summer when they can.

The 28-year-old would be a good signing for some clubs in the Championship, or sides competing at the top end of League One, but he's unlikely to feature often, if at all, in the Premier League.

With Ipswich winning two consecutive promotions, it means they have a squad filled with players who were playing in League One less than two years ago, and McKenna might have to make some difficult decisions this summer when it comes to moving players on.

Harness has been a good servant over the last two years, but the time is probably right for him to leave Portman Road this summer.