Big West Ham, Julen Lopetegui update will ease Ipswich Town, Kieran McKenna fear | OneFootball

Ipswich Town fans will be breathing a little easier with the news coming out of West Ham, with journalist Graeme Bailey reporting that the Irons have decided to appoint Julen Lopetegui as their new manager.

The Spaniard will replace David Moyes at the East London side this summer if the deal goes ahead, with the former Everton boss set to leave the side after four-and-a-half years in charge.

The Premier League side were said to be eying up a move for Town boss Kieran McKenna ahead of their current boss’ departure, although that move now looks dead in the water following the progress in negotiations with the former Spain manager.

Tractor Boys’ fans will be hoping to keep hold of the former Manchester United youth team boss over the summer, with the 37-year-old on the cusp of securing a return to the top flight for the Suffolk side after more than 20 years away.

Top flight clubs continue to sniff around for Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna

The number of clubs said to be interested in acquiring McKenna’s services shows no signs of shortening anytime soon, with plenty of top flight teams across Europe said to have the Northern Irishman on their radar.

As well as the Hammers, Brighton and Hove Albion are said to be considering a move for the young manager this summer, if current boss Roberto De Zerbi decides to leave the Seagulls when the season comes to an end.

Crystal Palace were also said to be interested in the boss before appointing current boss Oliver Glasner, while there has also been talk of German side Stuttgart having him on their shortlist if boss Sebastian Hoeneß is to leave the club.

It is no surprise to see the level of clamour for McKenna’s signature over the past 12 months, with the Town boss working wonders to steer the East Anglian side within a point of Premier League football with 90 minutes of the Championship season left to play.

If Ipswich avoid defeat against lowly Huddersfield Town this Saturday, they will secure back-to-back promotions, and with it a first season back in the top flight since the 2001/02 campaign.

It has been anything but plain sailing for the Suffolk side in the two decades since their last season dining at the top table, with relegation to League One followed by three frustrating years in the third tier, before the magic man turned fortunes around to guide them out of the division.

After securing promotion back to the Championship, McKenna hasn’t let his side lose the momentum of regularly winning matches, with his side taking the division by storm with their all-out attacking style of play.

No side has scored more than Ipswich’s 90 league goals this campaign, with the Tractor Boys laying siege upon their opposition’s goal time and time again, with his exciting brand of football a tantalising prospect for many Premier League club owners.

Kieran McKenna, Ipswich Town contract information

Ipswich are well aware what a special talent they have in the Portman Road dugout at the moment, and wasted no time in tying him down to a long-term deal once promotion to the Championship was secured.

The 37-year-old penned a new four-year deal with the club in the summer of 2023, meaning any club looking to make an approach for the Town boss will have to pay a hefty wedge to release him from his current deal.

The Suffolk side will be relieved by the actions of their current boss as well as his words, with a recent interview with Sky Sports about the new training ground at Playford Road offering encouragement about his future plans.

He said: "Even with the developments that have been made to the training ground over the past two years, I've always had a big say in it.

“There's been some good work at the stadium that I have been consulting in. But, with the training ground, I think it's right that a manager has a say in it.

“I’ll always manage the club as if I'm going to be here forever, and set it up to be in a great place for many years, and the training ground is going to be a big part of that.”

He’s doing the right things and saying the right things, but Town fans will be hoping this summer passes with the minimum of fuss, and it is still McKenna in charge by the time the next season gets underway in August.