‘He’s getting a second bite of the cherry’ – Ex-Leeds United man reacts as Rangers player looks set for Ipswich Town switch | OneFootball

Former Leeds United player Noel Whelan has said Ipswich Town will have a ‘great player’ if Rangers defender George Edmundson focuses on his football, in an interview with Football Insider.

These comments come after the 23-year-old and fellows Rangers man Jordan Jones were both given a seven-game suspension by the Scottish Football Association for breaching Covid-19 rules back in November, with the former being shipped out on loan to Derby for the second half of last season after falling out of favour with Steven Gerrard.

However, the centre-back made a good impression at Pride Park, scoring once in ten Championship appearances and proving to be an imposing figure in the middle of the park.

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With this and his ability to also play in central midfield, Derby County were recently reported to be interested in bringing Edmundson back on a temporary spell to the second tier.

However, their transfer embargo has removed any possibility of signing the 23-year-old permanently and even a loan deal could be difficult to get past the EFL with their strict transfer embargo restrictions.

League One outfit Ipswich Town have capitalised on this and according to Football Insider, have now finalised a deal with the Scottish Premiership champions to bring their defender to Portman Road as manager Paul Cook continues his rebuild in Suffolk.

Speaking to the same outlet, pundit Noel Whelan was optimistic about this deal for all parties and said: “To get him off the books, it’s £1m in the bank.

“The fact that you’re getting £1m for a player that breached discipline rules and regulations, that’s the best deal that could ever happen.

“For the player, he’s getting a second bite of the cherry and he needs to makes sure what happened last time doesn’t again.

“He needs to concentrate more on football than going out. If he does that, Ipswich will have a great player.

“He’s ruined that chance to maybe forge a career for himself at a big club but he’s been given another go here.”

The Verdict:

It’s hard to disagree with any of what Whelan has said here.

From his performances in the Championship last term, Paul Cook will know exactly what the defender can bring to Portman Road and one of his main attributes that many will pick out is his versatility.

Considering the scale of the League One side’s rebuild, it may be necessary to place square pegs in round holes throughout August as they look to finalise their moves in the transfer market.

Edmundson can provide some much-needed depth in defence and midfield after the club’s exodus this summer and considering there are still a few more players to offload, Flynn Downes being one of them, this just reinforces the need for someone like Edmundson to come in.

And after being left out in the cold at Ibrox, he will have a point to prove in Suffolk and this can only bode well for the Tractor Boys as they look to build a side capable of beating the likes of Sunderland and Charlton Athletic to promotion next term.