Town striker Jon Stead is weighing up whether to join Coventry City on loan with a view to a permanent move in the summer. Stead, the Blues' joint top scorer along with Jon Walters with six, has been on the bench since the arrival of Daryl Murphy and David Healy earlier this month.

According to reports in the Midlands, Town gave Coventry permission to hold talks with Stead yesterday and the Sky Blues hope to have the deal completed in time for the 26-year-old to face QPR — for the second time in a few days - on Saturday.

Coventry boss Chris Coleman has already added West Ham’s Freddie Sears to his squad and says he is hopeful of landing his second striking target: “We’ve been working hard to get a striker in before Saturday but we are still working away hard to get one more in before the weekend.

“Everything is agreed with the club and it is just getting him to sign, so I don’t want to tempt fate but we are very optimistic.”

Stead joined the Blues from Sheffield United at the start of the 2008/09 season, initially on loan before Town paid the Blades a fee of £600,000.

A switch to Coventry may well suit Town and Stead with the player appearing unlikely to play too many games now that Murphy and Healy have signed on loan from Sunderland, while the Blues are looking to make savings on the wage bill as they target further loan additions.

Meanwhile, new Town loanee David Healy says he is enjoying his time with the Blues. Writing in his column in the Belfast Telegraph, Healy said: "Two games into my new career at Ipswich Town and I have to say I’m loving it.

"After sitting on the bench or in the stands for most of the season with Sunderland, it’s fantastic to feel part of things again at a football club.”

Photo: Action Images

belfasttractor added 11:59 - Feb 12 Keep Sted and get rid of Pablo
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matt_the_blue added 11:59 - Feb 12 Worrying yes, but if this is happening because a better replacement is being lined up then not a problem. Lets wait and see what happens before jumping the gun eh?
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bennyblue added 12:02 - Feb 12 keep sted and pablo and get rid of keane
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ITFCNO1FAN added 12:12 - Feb 12 Why get rid of the Joint top goal scorer!!! We need goals to stay up. If not getting in starting 11 least have him on bench to come on and score. Bad choice if he goes as if Murphy or Healy gets injured what will happen then!!!!!
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Lightningboy added 12:16 - Feb 12 I'd keep Steady personally..I think most people forget he's knocked in 20 goals for us in 18 months.. He like our other strikers have suffered with the continual rotation of the front 2 over the last 2/3 seasons..strikers thrive on confidence but ours are in and out of the team so much that it must be difficult to find any sort of form.
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Surco72 added 12:34 - Feb 12 Perhaps Stead is going to make room for Chopra ? Cardiff link ?
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Surco72 added 12:41 - Feb 12 Perhaps Stead is going to make room for Chopra ? Cardiff link ?
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matt_the_blue added 12:41 - Feb 12 bennyblue - Change the record, you've already said that on this topic.
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OrkneyBlue added 12:44 - Feb 12 Bit of shame, quite like Steady but we don't know whats going on behind the scenes. It may be that a deal has been struck for Murphy, Healy or both or it might be a simple case of freeing up cash for someone else who knows, you would hope thats the case anyway. We'll just have to wait and see but if you are well down the pecking order which he has become, it's good for him and potentially good business for us. Good luck to him.

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bluesman added 12:56 - Feb 12 I love Keano's passion and his will to win but I wish he had a brain
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Jimmy86 added 12:56 - Feb 12 gotta say I am a fan of Keane but if this story is true im gonna be really disappointed. Earlier on in the season, round about the time when he got sent off against palace, he was the 1 scoring the goals. People worship Pablo but at the end of the day is he really that good? he doesn't offer the team the same as what stead does, he puts in a shift, scores goals if provided decent service and presses teams back fours. For me Pablo is a fans favourite but he is really quite over rated, doesn't score enough goals, sometimes appears lazy and should be behind stead in the pecking order. has stead actually done anything too much wrong to be loaned out?

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CJuk added 13:06 - Feb 12 Maybe a means to an end, whilst I agree with what you've posted, perhaps another striker already lined up to replace? I would certainly hope so.
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Carrotblue added 13:11 - Feb 12 Pablo should be sent out before Stead the trouble is no wants the lazy Spanish north stand idol
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muhrensleftfoot added 13:21 - Feb 12 Stead is an honest hard working player. He's never been a 20 goal a season, and despite his height, he can't head a ball. A poor man's Peter Crouch. I'd probably rather he stayed, but I'm not too bothered about him going. We're well covered now with Murphy, Healy, Pablo, Wickham & Walters. I wouldn't be surprised if we sign Murphy or Healy (or both) in the close season and we still have Priskin to come back for next season.

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GeorgiDoundarov added 13:21 - Feb 12 This is not so wise. If we are sure both Murphy and Healy will sign permanent contracts at the end of theis loan spell it may be ok but if they both go we will stay with nobady up front. Not to say that apart of the new loanees Stead is our best striker. Let Pablo go instead!
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Blueknight85 added 13:45 - Feb 12 if heally and murphy dont stay we still need 1 or 2 strikers to leave to get 1 or 2 different new ones in permanently healy/ murphy staying or not has no bearing on wether or not someone should leave
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biggerblue added 13:54 - Feb 12 PimsNumber1: "He is too anxious to score, he sees a chance and blasts it , ignoring better placed teammates" IMO Wickham is one of the better passers of the ball when it come to a front player! U should start taking them shades off mate! I would be worried if he was not anxious to score, considering that's what he is there to do! I feel for Stead as he was playing well untill his ban! Now is keane going to bring someone else in IMO no. We have enough cover up front but we do know he has been after a left back, so may be that's what he is after.

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TractorRoyNo1 added 14:07 - Feb 12 Unless we need to cut the wage bill, I can't see any sense in letting any forwards leave the club at this crucial time.
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pottyblue added 14:40 - Feb 12 cant head or shoot or lead the line simply not good enough only shame is he isnt taking pablo (lazy git) with him murphy and healy are a differrant class altogether,we have them on loan at the moment hopefully with a view to a perm transfer in the summer
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pitseablue added 14:50 - Feb 12 Never been to impressed with stead. Keano knows what he's about, had him before. In Keane we trust.
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mightytown added 14:51 - Feb 12 when stead arrived first arrived, i wasnt too impressed. we the payed over the odds, a short time into his loan to sign him permenantly. on occasion he has looked half decent and ive grown in my fondness of him. But, apart from that little patch of form before his suspension stead has never shown that he is good enough. he may work hard and is always generous in his recognition of the fans but for me, losing stead is no great shame. if the issue is money, fine, stead leaving will free up funds for another striker to come in. keane is sorting out wheat from the chaff, stead is chaff, i just hope its not too premature what with our current perilous position

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Guthrum added 14:53 - Feb 12 Somewhat surprised, but probably shouldn't be, given Murphy and Healy are ahead of him in the pecking order now and he'll be wanting to play, not sit on the bench. TBH he was our best striker in the second quarter of the season, but hasn't really shone since coming back from that very unfortunate suspension. It seems that it's broken his run of form. Pablo is quite capable of coming off the bench and scoring some cracking goals (and has done) - probably better than when he starts. Plus there's still Wickham to fill in (too young and inexperienced for much else, as yet). So, on the whole, probably to be expected and not overly concerned. Did well for us at a crucial point in the season, when things were very low. Wish him all the best for the future if he does go.

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Jesney_Havoc added 15:13 - Feb 12 Wait - stop press - This guy is our top scorer... Most of the rest of the strikers in our squad are only here on loan, or themselves loaned out. Oh lordy, what to do....?!
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MyBlueHeaven added 15:14 - Feb 12 this isn't intended as an anti-keane post but... i don't get what he's doing with the squad. this seems to be another example of keane not knowing what he wants. throughout the season it's been 'i like him.. he's a good lad' followed by 'he needs to get his act together' then 'he's going nowhere' and 'if the right offer comes in..'. garvan... quinn... trotter... d wright.... delaney... counago... priskin... bruce (made captain... loaned out) and now stead, off top of my head. there may well be specific reasons for individual players but as an overall strategy i'm left wondering whether keane changes his mind weekly on players.

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cbower added 15:15 - Feb 12 Stead is something of an enigma to me. At times he looks the part - running at pace with ball, able to twist and shoot on goal but it is all too inconsistent. Whilst he never lacks for effort, his control can be very poor for someone who has spent much of his career in the Premiership, he is as good as useless in the air - often failing to jump let alone win the ball - and his aility to hold the ball up and bring others into the game is frequently less than impressive. Having said that, as a support striker he has a reasonable goals ratio and I would agree with those who would rather see Pablo leave at this stage than Stead. However, let's not forget, Keane was quite willing to sell Pablo to Swansea pre-season but the player was unable to agree personal terms. I am not sure if Keane would bring in a loan striker at this stage but see this as laying the groundwork to make striker investments in the summer. If Stead goes we should wish him well. We would almost be forced into a settled front line - something that many have been demanding of Keane for ages. If he stays, I still reckon his days as an Ipswich player may well be limited to the end of this season anyway.

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