Portsmouth could turn to Ipswich Town in bid to bolster midfield: View | OneFootball

Portsmouth fans will already be counting down the days until the next Championship season gets underway, with their club returning to the second tier for the first time in 12 years.

John Mousinho’s men swept aside all that came before them on the way to the League One title this campaign, and will already be putting cogs into place to build a squad worthy of competing against the best the EFL have to offer.

The heart of midfield will be somewhere that the Fratton Park boss may feel he needs extra reinforcements over the summer, with Marlon Pack and Joe Morrell needing some support in the engine room over the course of the campaign should they sign new contracts with both having expiring deals.

One player who may have already caught the eye of Pompey fans this campaign is Idris El Mizouni, with the Leyton Orient loanee already showing his capabilities of bossing the show at Fratton Park earlier in the campaign.

Idris El Mizouni may look to leave Ipswich Town this summer in search of regular game-time

The Tunisian enforcer was paramount to an Orient side who came to the south coast and emerged with a 3-0 win at the start of 2024, with Richie Wellens’ side keeping the would-be champions at bay for much of the 90 minutes.

With his tenacity and high-energy in the centre of the park, the 23-year-old was central to everything Orient did well without the ball, as they withheld the hosts to just four shots on target throughout the match, despite having a deficit to try to fix.

The Ipswich loanee has made the step up to League One level expertly this season, having been fundamental to the O’s League Two title-winning campaign the campaign before, racking up over 80 appearances for the Brisbane Road outfit over the past two years.

Whether it be breaking up opposition attacks or providing the spark to start his own team’s forays forward, the midfielder has proven himself to be a talented EFL performer over the previous two seasons, and looks likely to go one step further in the following campaign.

A player of El Mizouni’s calibre would be priceless in a team coming up to the Championship, with his ball-winning abilities helping his side to keep some of the EFL greatest attacking forces at bay, and marshall the defensive unit to keep the ball away from the penalty area.

After seeing his season ended prematurely due to an MCL injury sustained on Good Friday, El Mizouni will have the summer to recuperate ahead of the following campaign, and will likely have plenty of choices for his next destination if he is to leave Portman Road.

Idris El Mizouni's Ipswich Town contract information

El Mizouni's deal with the Tractor Boys is set to expire at the end of June, although the East Anglian side do have the option of extending that deal by an extra year if they wish to do so.

With Kieran McKenna on the verge of steering his side to the Premier League, the only reason the Suffolk side would extend his current deal is to command a fee for him if he does leave this summer, which many clubs would surely be willing to pay.

Even if there was money involved, it would be a wise investment from the powers that be at Fratton Park, with the solidity that El Mizouni offers likely to contribute to keeping the side in the division, and help them push further up the table.

With Pack offered another deal at the club following the conclusion of the season, while Morrell's extension option has been triggered with conversations ongoing, the addition of the one-cap Tunisia international would provide the perfect tonic to the duo, as well as January recruit Owen Moxon.

A host of clubs were said to be interested in signing the young star in the recent January transfer window, although none were said to reach Town’s valuation of the player, who has earned plenty of plaudits during the past 24 months.