Kieran McKenna makes transfer claim involving Ipswich Town and Christian Walton | OneFootball

Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna has admitted the club are working hard to further Christian Walton’s stay at Portman Road.

The goalkeeper is set to return to his parent-club Brighton & Hove Albion following the Tractor Boys’ clash with Bolton Wanderers tomorrow.

A recent report from the East Anglian Daily Times suggested that Ipswich are looking into the possibility of securing a permanent move for Walton whose contract at Brighton is set to expire this summer.

During his current stint at Ipswich, Walton has featured on 13 occasions for the club in League One whilst he has also made four appearances in the FA Cup.

After claiming a clean-sheet in the club’s victory over Gillingham last weekend, the keeper will be hoping to help the Tractor Boys seal all three points at the University of Bolton Stadium on Saturday.

Ipswich could move above Sheffield Wednesday and Portsmouth in the third-tier standings if they beat the Trotters.

Ahead of this fixture, McKenna has revealed that the club are still looking to extend Walton’s stay.

Speaking to the East Anglian Daily Times about Walton, the Ipswich boss said: “I’ve had a couple of conversations with him, as has Ren (Gilmartin, goalkeeping coach) and I know the club are continuing conversations with him.

“I’ll keep the details private obviously, but I know Christian loves being here, wants to be here, he’s enjoying being here.”

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“I know the club are working really hard behind the scenes.

“Obviously there’s a recall clause in there, which has been publicised, so I know the club are working hard to see if there’s anything that they can do to keep him to the end of the season because that’s what I think is a really good outcome for all parties.”

The Verdict

For Ipswich’s sake, they will be hoping to make a breakthrough in their pursuit of a permanent deal for Walton in the coming weeks as the 26-year-old has demonstrated that he is capable of delivering the goods at this level during the current campaign.

Whilst the keeper will be forced to watch on from the sidelines at Brighton if he doesn’t seal a move away from the club due to the presence of Robert Sanchez, he could further his development by featuring regularly in the third-tier for Ipswich.

In order to fend off any potential from elsewhere, the Tractor Boys will need to submit a respectable bid for Walton.

Providing that Ipswich are able to convince Brighton to part ways with the shot-stopper, there is every chance that they will be able to reach new heights at this level with Walton in their side.