Ipswich rule out striker move

Monday, 07/11/2011

by Sam Broadley, Shoot's Ipswich Town blogger

Striker Jordan Rhodes will not be coming back to Ipswich Town, according to manager Paul Jewell.

The Huddersfield hotshot was controversially sold in 2009 by former boss Roy Keane for just £850,000 and has gone on to score 58 goals in 115 games for the Yorkshire club.

Jewell has been to watch Huddersfield twice in recent weeks, which sparked rumours of a bid to bring the 21-year-old back to the Blues, but he was this week quick to dismiss the speculation, stating that Rhodes only appeared as a substitute in one of those games and not at all in the other.

With Rhodes having been called up to the full Scotland side to go to Cyprus next week, and a host of clubs reportedly showing interest in him, including Manchester United, it would seem unlikely Town would be able to pull off the signing in any case, despite the boy reportedly saying he would “walk back to Ipswich tomorrow”.

Good news for Ipswich fans came from the mouth of on-loan midfielder Keith Andrews this week when he stated he would love to extend his stay from Blackburn. The 30-year-old is due to return to his parent club in January but is looking for a permanent deal to stay with the Blues. Fans will welcome this development with the Republic of Ireland international having formed a great partnership with the ever-popular Jimmy Bullard in the middle of the park.

Meanwhile, Town striker Michael Chopra has hit the headlines nationally for all the wrong reasons recently amid revelations of his long-term gambling addiction.

The former Cardiff goalscorer, who signed for the Blues in the summer, said in a candid interview this week that he was at one time gambling £20,000 per day and has lost up to £2m in total. A debt collector posing as an autograph hunter reportedly attended the Ipswich Town training ground this week to demand cash from the player.

Town officials have backed “Chops” to overcome his addiction, and he made his first steps recently when he spent three weeks at the Sporting Chance Clinic formed by former addict Paul Merson.

Going public will hopefully spark some goalscoring form on the pitch for the striker who has been hailed as one of the most exciting signings for Ipswich Town in the last ten years. Fans will want nothing more than to see him recover and blast the club back into the Premier League where they belong.

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