Brandon Williams reacts after leaving Man Utd for Ipswich Town | OneFootball

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Brandon Williams has joined Ipswich Town from Manchester United.

The full back has joined Town on a season-long loan fromthe Red Devils, with his new boss Kieran McKenna coaching the 22-year-old when he was coming through Man United's youth system.

He is Ipswich's fifth signing of the summer, and he brings plenty of top flight experience with 50 Premier League appearances under his belt.

He will wear the number 18 for Ipswich.

Brandon Williams on joining Ipswich Town and reuniting with Kieran McKenna

Williams has said, to the club's website, that he's come to the club to get into the first XI and play a lot of minutes.

He said that the last few years at United were tough ones, and that he's looking forward to getting back to playing football.

“I’m excited to work with him again," said Williams on his new manager.

“Kieran was my youth team coach at United and, from there, we have had a great relationship. He's always had the standards of a coach at the top level and he's had a big influence on me.

“He has always kept in touch with me to make sure I’m okay, and I trust everything he says because he is great to learn off," said the 22-year-old.

McKenna joined the Suffolk-based side in December 2021 after rising through the coaching ranks under Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. He was the club's under-18s coach before being promoted to a first team role whilst Mourinho was with the club.

Kieran McKenna on Brandon Williams joining Ipswich Town

“He’s someone I’ve known since a very young age, and I’ve seen his journey and how hard he’s worked to get to where he’s got to," said McKenna on his new loan signing.

“He’s a dynamic, athletic defender who plays with great energy and commitment and has good quality driving forward with the ball. He can go inside and outside from both wings and can pass and cross with both feet.

"He is an aggressive and positive defender who enjoys defending but can also give us thrust going forward from different positions."

Last season, the 22-year-old didn't get much playing time. McKenna said that Williams "has had some bad luck with injuries."

He added, though, that he thinks the move to Suffolk for the 2023/24 season will not only be of benefit to his team, but also to Williams as a player.

The Ipswich manager said “We think this is a good fit for our group and a really good step for him to come into our environment and culture, where he can work hard and get back to playing at the levels we know he is capable of.”

The 37-year-old's side has had a perfect start to the season, winning all four of their games and only conceding one. Leif Davis and Janoi Donacien have been the consistent full-back pairing, in the league, for Ipswich, this season.

Donacien came off after 37 minutes last weekend, against QPR, due to injury.

Can Brandon Williams get into the Ipswich Town first XI?

Even with the injury to the 29-year-old right back, it's going to be a big challenge for him to cement his place.

Greg Leigh and Harry Clarke were the second-choice full-backs before Williams joined. Those two are more than capable, and will have the full trust of manager McKenna.

I'm sure that the manager fully believes in his new signing too. But he's played such little football over the past year; it's going to take him a few weeks to just get up to speed, let alone start.

He's going to be a very handy option to have, and he's obviously got great ability. But will McKenna go for sentimentality over what he already knows works? I doubt it.