Ashton: Contract Conversations in the Summer
Monday, 27th Mar 2023 15:26

Blues CEO Mark Ashton says the club will address the situations of the players whose current deals are up at the end of the season in the summer.

Janoi Donacien, Kane Vincent-Young, Sone Aluko, Richard Keogh and Joel Coleman have deals which are up at the end of the campaign, along with Massimo Luongo, who signed a short-term contract in January.

“I think at the end of the season there’ll be a deep breath and we’ll look at it,” Ashton said. “There are options in a couple of those contracts [Donacien and Vincent-Young] on our side to trigger if we want.”

Regarding Luongo, who said he’d be up for extending his time at Portman Road when asked following the Shrewsbury match, Ashton added: “With Mass, he’s come in, he’s got himself fit, he’s shown what a good player is, but we’ll sit down with Mass and say ‘Where are you at? At your age now, what do you want to do, where do you want to be in a couple of years’ and it all has to be right. Those conversations will be 100 per cent led by Kieran.”

Speaking earlier this month, manager McKenna didn’t rule out Arsenal loanee Tyreece John-Jules, whose season has been ended by injury, returning next season, while Ashton says the Blues have their own players out on loan such as Elkan Baggott, who is at Cheltenham, Corrie Ndaba, currently with Fleetwood, and Idris El Mizouni, at Leyton Orient who are doing well.

“I think we’ve got a nice little under crop there just bubbling away as well and it’s hard work making sure they’re placed in the right places for loans,” he said. “Players like Elkan. I think Elkan’s a good example, game time, right coaching, it’s such a minefield.

“We had this whole debate on Cam Humphreys, do we keep him in, do we let him out on loan? The feeling at the time was that we were probably going to need him at some point.

“And where he is [in his career], his development is best served with Kieran right now. And I think he’s another young man who typifies everything which is good about this football club. Just leaves everything on the pitch.

“Has a smile on his face, comes from a great family, has come through the academy, is going to have a long career here, he’s going to end up playing a lot of games here, but he’s right at the start of his career.

“How Kieran and his staff blend that in to making sure he’s getting the right game time, to making sure he’s getting the right time with us, to making sure he’s in the right environment, has the right people around him and the right coaches is key.”

Ashton says the development of the likes of Baggott, Ndaba and El Mizouni will have an impact on the contract and recruitment situation in the summer.

“One hundred per cent,” he said. “You’ve got Idris who has gone out and done extremely well. The manager will then make the call, ‘Is he what I want? Where would he fit into my squad?’.

“We then make the call on the back of what the manager says. If we want to move them, ‘Mark over to you, go drive the value’. If he wants them in, we’ll look at the contracts and we’ll keep them in and that’s where he slots in.

“But I’m trying to keep Kieran - although I don’t really have to try, he’s wise enough to do it - to keep his eye on the prize, he doesn’t need other things to think about at the moment.”

The Mark Ashton Interview

Photo: Matchday Images

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MickMillsTash added 15:50 - Mar 27 Surely Keep Janoi - whatever league we are in next year he can do a job
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Bazza8564 added 15:58 - Mar 27

Yep, agree with MMT above, JD has to stay and we have to get Massimo on a longer deal if he wants to stay.
A lot of everything else depends on where we are in terms of promotion. If we get up i sense El Miz, the two CHs and probable Cam will all go out on loan again. If we are in L1, then players like Aluko and KVY will probably have parts to play.
Lets get promoted and then I think slimming the squad down is probably going to be more of a priority than adding to it, in addition to all those above there's Adhame and Pigott too....

Suffolkboy added 16:29 - Mar 27 How long is it since we were ( almost) concerned by an embarrassment of riches ?– AND it's not just on the pitch for our ‘Senior ‘ Management team are obviously locked together making sure the good life and promotion hopes continue ! COYB
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exeterblue10 added 16:55 - Mar 27 Suffolkboy. Embarrassment of riches under Marcus Evans, just lacking the 'of riches' bit.
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VanDusen added 17:00 - Mar 27

We must keep Janoi. Very unlucky to have lost his place recently as really is one of our most consistent performers over the last two years (what a lesson in how a player can improve after my reaction seeing him debut at Exeter in 2018). The rest - probably depends on which league we're playing in next season.

Btw - Luongo's been great the last few games but I wonder if there isn't a personality problem which has seen him move on from several clubs given his evident skill - certainly seems strange that Mick M would have let him go back when he joined based on talent alone when we know how he dealt with players with 'big personalities'. Also beware any Aussie sportsman with a moustache - seems to be a real fad of the jocks over there (based on the cricket, Commonwealth Games, World Cup etc.). ;o)

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Karlosfandangal added 20:45 - Mar 27

JD will be excellent back up for Clarke and even CB, however it's a big jump from League 1 to Championship, how many of our current squad are up to the Championship.

Need to get there first and then start building a team to stay in it…. And improve each year to challenge for the Prem.

Sir Bobby built 3 or 4 teams in his time at Town but only brought in 2 or 3 players at a time the rest came from the academy.

It was always Beattie and Hunter at the back and then it seemed over night Butcher and Osman, they just slotted in to the side and I can see already KMK seems to be doing the same thing with players like Humphrey's.

blues1 added 07:54 - Mar 28 Bazza8564. You really think that if we go up, we'll be slimming the squad down? Quite the opposite I would think. Will be bringing more in for sure. Oviously thered be some go as well, but wouldn't be slimming the squad, that's for sure
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blues1 added 07:56 - Mar 28 Vandusen. Luongo hasn't moved from several clubs has he? Just 2, sheff weds where he'd been for a,few years, then middlesborough, having not played much. So hardly suggests an attitude problem, does it?
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Unhinged_dynamo added 10:14 - Mar 28

I'd keep sone, JD and Massimo if possible regardless of what league we're in, maybe time to move on KVY now we have Clarke and Davis. if we go up I'd expect to see Humphreys out on loan maybe short term till January and maybe el miz to a higher league one club and see how he cuts it there. Other than that if we can get TJJ or another young arsenal player in next summer I'd be happy with that as they also have a very good young crop coming through who could do a job at championship level

UhlenbeekDownTheWing added 14:36 - Mar 28

Donacien's improvement under McKenna has been unreal. Just a different player to who we saw in previous seasons. Hard to imagine him not staying, given his ability to cover CB and RB.

I have always loved KVY - he got so unlucky with his injury at at time when he was our best player by far. Just hasn't got a look in of any sort since...suspect it will be best for all for him to get a clean slate elsewhere.

Luongo feels like a no brainer for a 2 year contract. He offers physicality, energy and an ability to slip naughty little through balls in and around the area...can't think of a CM we have had with that ability for a long old time...

PortmanTerrorist added 15:55 - Mar 28

Suspect that more will be moved on than we might be thinking. The Club will strengthen each Window regardless of which League we are in, and that requires space to be made, esp if any youth players like Elkan come into the fold. However many we let go, Luongo is one to keep and the one I wonder about is Dom Ball who was good and steady but Loungo has shown us a new level.