New Blues signing Adam Webster says the chance to join Town was an opportunity he couldn’t turn down. The 21-year-old became Mick McCarthy’s most costly Blues recruit when he signed from Portsmouth at the start of the month for a fee of £700,000 with Matt Clarke moving in the opposite direction.

Webster, from West Wittering near Chichester, had been with League Two Pompey for a decade but felt moving to Championship Town was something he couldn’t pass up.

“I’ve been there since I was 11, so a long time. I’ve been in the first team for a good four and a half, five years as well,” he told BBC Suffolk.

“I loved my time there but this is an opportunity I could never turn down and one I’m really looking forward to.”

Webster, who won caps with England’s U18s and U19s, believes the Championship is a less forgiving environment than League Two.

“It’s full of quality, any mistakes that you make you’re probably going to get punished, whereas mistakes you make in League Two sometimes you get away with them,” he added.

“Definitely in the Championship there is so much quality in every team. There’s not a bad side in the league, so you’ve got to be concentrating and you’ve got to be at your best otherwise you get punished.”

Webster has experience of the Championship from Portsmouth’s days in the second tier, while he was also in the Pompey side which drew at Portman Road in the FA Cup third round in January and went on to win the replay 2-1 at Fratton Park.

“We all played well that day, that was like a cup final for us against such a big team,” he said recalling the first match, which ended 2-2.

“We played against Reading and Derby [in the Capital One Cup] earlier on in the season and we did really well against them as well. That will help me this season. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Webster missed Portsmouth’s League Two play-off semi-final defeat to Plymouth as he had picked up an ankle injury which has prevented him from being involved in the first few weeks of pre-season training with the Blues.

He admits that’s been a frustration but he hopes to make his first appearance in a Town shirt when the Blues travel to Cambridge on Saturday 23rd July.

“Obviously you want to be training with the boys straight away, that’s a main part of settling in, you get to form relationships with the players on the pitch and so on,” the one-time Aldershot Town loanee continued.

“But it’s been just as good getting to know everyone, I’m just looking forward to getting back training so I can do that.

“The injury has been really progressing since I came into the building. I’ve been running for the past 10 days now. We’ve got, hopefully, Cambridge in mind, but I’ll be back in full training next week.

“I’d like to think I’ll be 100 per cent certain I’ll be fit for Barnsley on the opening day, but you take every day as it comes with an injury and hopefully I’ll be fine for it.”

Right-sided Webster will be battling Christophe Berra and Tommy Smith for a regular starting berth, while skipper and regular right-back Luke Chambers is another central defensive option for manager Mick McCarthy, along with Paul Digby, who also signed this summer after his loan spell from Barnsley last season.

“There’s great competition for places at centre-half this year,” Webster said. “I’m just looking forward to getting back training and seeing what I can do.”

He added: “Mick McCarthy’s definitely somebody I can learn a great deal from and I’m really looking forward to working with him.”

Labelled a ball-playing centre-half, Webster says he has confidence when in possession: “I’ve always liked to think that I can bring the ball out from the back, that’s one of my traits. I’d like to show everyone what I can do.

“I’m confident in my own ability, you’ve got to be. If you’re not confident in your own ability then it’s going to be hard for somebody to trust you. You’ve got to be confident and show everyone what you can do.”

Webster played much of his early senior football as a full-back but has no doubt about his best position.

“I played right-back when I made my debut at 17 and for three years after that,” he added. “I don’t mind playing the odd game there but centre-half’s my best position. That’s the position I want to nail down.”

Photo: BBC Suffolk

Photo: Action Images

BrettenhamBlue added 13:30 - Jul 14 Centre half is your best position? Don't worry, you'll be playing left wing in no time... Best of luck to you and welcome to the club.
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Surco72 added 13:36 - Jul 14 Ball playing centre half - we will soon coach that out of lad
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Surco72 added 13:36 - Jul 14 Ball playing centre half - we will soon coach that out of lad
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rfretwell added 14:17 - Jul 14 Now now lads! "there so much quality in the Championship" - er like home v QPR, Rotherham etc last season. Newcastle and Naaarch will have most of the quality this season.
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ThatMuhrenCross added 14:27 - Jul 14 "Opportunity I couldn't turn down" - I'm sure those were the words of Captain Edward Smith, as he accepted the job of taking the Titanic on it's maiden voyage......
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brian_a_mul added 14:55 - Jul 14 Good to see Mick bringing in footballers to the squad. We can see the way MM is shaping the squad for the future with Webster, Digby, McDonnell, Bish, Dozzell, etc all very bright and technically good footballers Will be interesting to see how MM tactics and game plans work out over the next few seasons as the youngsters develop in to the first team :)
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lightingblue added 14:57 - Jul 14 Must've heard we were playing olly murs. Websters got the wrong X factor
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gosblue added 15:34 - Jul 14 A right sided CB should not be in competition with Bera and Smith. Those two should be battling it out for the left sided role. We've got good competition/backup in most areas. We just need to sort out the wide areas. We had a great opportunity to have four quality strikers competing for spots last season but we chose to try to accommodate them all. I think that was our undoing. Competition is healthy if used properly.

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cats_whiskers added 16:13 - Jul 14 In life we all have at least one regret I wonder how soon his is going to show itself? As Chambers place is set in stone and those 2 left sided first choice centre-halves McCarthy favours are an accident waiting to happen. (McCarthy is evidently too blind to see it) So at best you may get a cameo role nearer the 90th minute, but realistically you'll be no more than a bench warmer. Except of course in the EFL Cup you'll be GUARANTEED to start against Stevenage

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cats_whiskers added 16:52 - Jul 14 Reading today signed 21 year old John Swift from Chelsea for nothing!! Last season on loan at Brentford he scored seven goals in 27 Championship appearances Somehow comparing him to Luke Hyam he would appear to be an absolute bargain as it's likely to take Hyam at least 5 years to achieve that type of goal scoring. Obviously our manager wasn't too keen on tempting him to join us or he didn't tick the right boxes. But Jaap Stam didn't let him slip through the net and it will be interesting how he performs against us in the Sky match.

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GerkensBeard added 17:23 - Jul 14 Webster right side and smith left side this season please to start with. Smith is the better footballer than Berra who I still say if he was 5ft 10 and skinny he'd be playing for a pub team. Plus his form was awful towards the end of the season. Would be great to see this young footballing centre half partnership develop! And in regards to earlier comments with MM bringing the youngsters through and at least echoing to try to get the ball moving at Barnet. I would happily take 14/15th this season with bringing Kenlock, Emmanuel, Bishop, Dozzell and McDonell through into the regular 18 and at least try and develop and decent brand of football with these technically gifted youngsters

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runningout added 21:39 - Jul 14 Whoever is doing the interviewing on Ipswich player would do better with the questions.. as interesting as me On a very bad day..
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carsey added 00:17 - Jul 15 My money is on the same tried and failed back four as last season with a few of the youngsters on the bench. If Webster is even fit for Barnsley you can guarantee he won't be playing in his favoured best position bringing the ball out and passing to a blue shirt because Bart or more likely Gerkin will have been told to whack it up the pitch to Murphy. Sorry folks but that is the McCarthy way and it isn't going to change.

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