Sunderland boss Steve Bruce says he’s not sure whether Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards will complete their switch to the Blues before the transfer window closes on Tuesday. Elsewhere, Town are linked with a number of other players in Sunday’s tabloids.

Bruce said after the Black Cats’ 1-0 defeat to Stoke that the moves are in the balance: "Whether anything will happen before Tuesday we are not quite sure."

The clubs have agreed a fee for the pair and both players were in talks regarding personal terms at Portman Road on Thursday.

Wages are the sticking point with the duo likely to have to take significant drops in pay to move to the Championship and would almost certainly want Sunderland to settle the remaining time on their deals at the Stadium of Light. Edwards is contracted until June 2010 and Leadbitter until 2011.

If no permanent deal is done, the clubs could arrange loans, either before Tuesday or when the emergency loan window opens the following week. Edwards is due to join up with the Trinidad and Tobago squad in San Pedro Sula, Honduras early this week ahead of their World Cup qualifier with the Central Americans next Saturday.

Elsewhere, Town boss Roy Keane is said to be chasing Celtic central defender Darren O’Dea. The 22-year-old was previously linked with the Blues in October last year by the Scottish press when the club dismissed the reports.

Keane targeted another Celtic central defender earlier in the week, skipper Stephen McManus, who decided against making the move south after the clubs had agreed a loan deal.

O’Dea is reported to have been on Keane’s radar all summer and the Blues boss is said to be ready to pay �£1 million for his services before Tuesday.

The 6ft 1in tall defender has made only one start and two sub appearances for Tony Mowbray’s side this season. Overall, he has started just 31 matches since making his Bhoys debut in 2006, in addition to 14 sub appearances. He has scored five goals.

Formerly the skipper of the Irish U21s and U19s, the Dubliner came through the ranks at Celtic having played youth football at the famous Home Park club alongside Owen Garvan, Shane Supple and Michael Synnott and where Garvan's father is a coach.

Last season, left-sided O'Dea was a team-mate of skipper Alex Bruce in an Irish fringe side which played Nottingham Forest, with Garvan also involved in the game.

The defender is currently contracted to Celtic until 2010 with an option of a further year.

Town are also said to be after veteran Birmingham midfielder Lee Carsley, although the 35-year-old is believed to be unwilling to uproot his family from the Midlands. In any case the former Derby, Blackburn, Coventry and Everton man was in the Birmingham side which lost to Spurs yesterday and appears to be in Alex McLeish’s plans.

Photo: Action Images

*REMOVED* added 20:59 - Aug 31 Serbia, not on;y do I agree with you, but ME has to look at the 12 mil (or whatever it was) that he gave to Jim as lost money (a sunk cost). That money is not coming back, and that money is not getting Ipswich promoted. Period. ME will not make the Premier League and make a profit on his investment) without additional capital to invest. My position (again) also is that Ipswich aren't gaining promotion by refusing to pay over the odds and waiting until the deadline day to make desperation deals. If "the Ipswich Way" needs to change, I'd start here.

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itfcserbia added 21:03 - Aug 31 shame i loved ipswich way some 10 years ago :) anyway, by looking into the football market this days, prices are up so if we are not ready to follow, obviously there are clubs that will leave us behind... you know how they always say "money can't make you a team", well i say money alone can't make you a team...
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jonnysuave added 21:28 - Aug 31 I think ScottCandage has got something there - not sure if I know of Billy Fancypants and John Moneybags. Are they Irish League players? That would explain a lot. For what it's worth. My thoughts are that if we can get Fancypants on the left, Gio through the middle and Moneybags in the hole we will have one heck of a championship outfit.
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del1boy added 21:38 - Aug 31 Splash some cash and you will get some class, we need to find players that have something that others dont. we need an edge, which we aint got and i dont think will have this year. But still up the town, we only need 6th
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bedsitfc added 22:39 - Aug 31 looks like richard wood from sheff wed is on his way to us he is a central defender
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itfcserbia added 22:44 - Aug 31 good, we could use some wood in back line ;)
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Ipswich24 added 22:48 - Aug 31 get beckford in keane and dos santos and a decent centre half not goin ask u again do it
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bedsitfc added 22:51 - Aug 31 dos santos not coming, and beckford good player but to much ego wouldn't fit in with team, but wood is coming
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bedsitfc added 22:53 - Aug 31 jackson from gillingham would do a job for us
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moomoosereni added 00:45 - Sep 1 Dos Santos and Simeon Jackson please. Two players with good attitudes and would give us that "spark" that we so desperately need. Like Beckford but lets face it his arrogance would just not go down well with keane and some of our fans. We do need someone in the heart of our defence, to sure it up and bring in some strength in depth but we need need need a minimum 20 goal a season striker. We haven't had one of such promise or quality since Darren Bent and that seems like a life time ago. Please Keane, if you are to do anything in the next day, just get us a goalscorer please, someone to get us all excited about town player that wonderful attacking football we all became accustomed to in the past with Town!

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