Ipswich Town news: Chuba Akpom hijack, Kieran McKenna concerns, Aro Muric exit talk, Hayden Hackney blow | OneFootball

FLW rounds-up the latest developments at Ipswich Town.

Ipswich Town will be going through their final preparations as they gear up to face Birmingham City on the opening weekend of the 2025-26 Championship season.

The Tractor Boys made an immediate return to the second-tier following their relegation from the Premier League, but are expected to leapfrog back to the big time due to the superior squad and financial resources they possess.

Kieran McKenna’s men rounded off pre-season with an excellent 3-0 victory over French outfit Auxerre, ensuring they head into their clash at St Andrew’s with some forward momentum.

It’s set to be a high-octane affair, with Blues riding high from their resounding promotion out of League One and spending heavily under Tom Wagner as they aim to repeat Ipswich’s feat of back-to-back promotions into the Premier League.

With the Championship season just around the corner, Football League World rounds-up the latest news surrounding Ipswich Town.

Ipswich Town attempt to hijack Chuba Akpom transfer

Ipswich Town are attempting to make a sensational late swoop for Ajax striker Chuba Akpom.

Akpom has been the subject of significant interest from Championship clubs during the summer transfer window, with Birmingham City originally looking set to have won the race for his services, while Middlesbrough had also been pushing to secure a reunion.

A new fresh transfer twist has emerged though, with Sky Sports now claiming that Ipswich are now keen on hijacking a move and adding Akpom to their forward line.

They are believed to have made an approach to the Amsterdam-based outfit to try and bring him to Portman Road, although Middlesbrough and Greek outfit Olympiakos are also still trying to make deals of their own happen.

Kieran McKenna lists injury issues to Ipswich Town quartet ahead of Birmingham City

Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna has revealed that Conor Townsend, Leif Davis, Jaden Philogene and Harry Clarke all have injury issues as the clock ticks down to their season opener against Birmingham City.

As reported by Suffolk News, McKenna provided a worrying update on the injury front following their convincing 3-0 friendly victory over Auxerre.

Full-back Conor Townsend limped off with a knee complaint in the first half against their French opponents, while Jaden Philogene suffered an ankle problem shortly after the beginning of the second half.

And McKenna admitted that both were doubts heading into their opener in the West Midlands.

McKenna said: "It doesn't look great. That's obviously going to be a downside of today.

"Conor is his knee. We'll get it scanned. Jaden, a heavy knock on his ankle. We're going to have to see how he is.

"That leaves us in a frustrating time and a trickier situation going into next week, but you're going to have challenges over the course of the year.

"We'll see how the boys are - those who have stayed at home as well - and we'll deal with the challenge head-on."

Meanwhile, Leif Davis missed the trip due to a knock and Harry Clarke was also unavailable, with McKenna suggesting the latter was going to be out for an extended period of time.

McKenna added: “Leif’s got an injury, so unfortunate timing, and we’re going to have to see how he responds.

“Harry picked up an injury, so he’s going to be out for quite a while. We’re not exactly sure how long yet. It will be assessed over the next few weeks, and we’ll decide the best course of action from there.

“It’s in his knee tendon, so it’s a decision around what’s the best course of action. Honestly, that won’t be decided until we’ve seen how the next few weeks pan out, and it settles down.”

Aro Muric set to make Ipswich Town departure to Turkey

Aro Muric is set to put an end to his miserable spell at Ipswich Town and complete a move overseas to Turkey.

TWTD have relayed reports from Turkey, indicating that the shot-stopper is closing in on a move to Çaykur Rizespor.

This would see Muric return to the Turkish Süper Lig, where he previously had a spell on loan with Adana Demirspor while a Manchester City player, with the deal said to be largely done and could be finalised soon.

The Swiss-born keeper wasn’t in the squad against Auxerre over the weekend, with Alex Palmer starting and Christian Walton and David Button occupying the bench, so it isn’t a surprise to see Muric heading to the exit door with so much depth already in that position.

Hayden Hackney rejects Ipswich Town move

Ipswich Town suffered a blow over the weekend as Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney reportedly rejected the chance to move to Portman Road this summer.

Ipswich had an offer worth £20 million accepted by the Teesside outfit, but the player still views his future at the Riverside Stadium.

It’s understood that the player travelled to Suffolk in order to discuss a move to Ipswich, but talks have led to him turning down the opportunity.

It’s believed that the Tractor Boys had offered Hackney a significant increase on his current wages, but that’s not been enough to tempt him to leave Middlesbrough.