Boss Paul Jewell admits that Keith Andrews is less and less likely to rejoin the Blues with Premier League Wigan now appearing to head the race for the Blackburn midfielder’s signature. Fellow former loanee Danny Collins also looks highly unlikely to return to Portman Road with Bolton Wanderers understood to be leading the chase to sign the Wales international.
Jewell says Town owner Marcus Evans recently talked to Andrews’s representative: "Marcus spoke with his agent during the week and I keep hearing different stories - that Blackburn want a fee for him, then that Blackburn wanted him to play last week, then that he’s met with Wigan. We’re up against it a little bit there,” he conceded.
Reports elsewhere this morning claim Andrews and Wigan are in talks but with a clause relating to the Irish international's wages dropping in the event of relegation currently a sticking point.
The Blues manager says Town’s move for Leicester’s Sean St Ledger is also currently dead in the water, although that could change: "I think it all depends on someone else coming in at Leicester, that’s the way football works.
"They’re not going to let someone go because they’ve picked up an injury or they’ve got someone away at the African Nations Cup. It’s like chain. You’ll see in the transfer market, something will just trigger off a train of events.”
Perhaps notably, the Foxes have made Nottingham Forest a £500,000 offer for centre-half Wes Morgan which is currently being weighed-up.
Meanwhile, Jewell says Jason Scotland’s contract situation — an additional year at his current wages will be triggered after he has made another four league starts — won’t come into his thoughts when selecting his team: "That isn’t an issue. There’s no way I wouldn’t play Jason because of his contract.
"The only way I wouldn’t play Jason would be because of football reasons. I’ve had a chat with Jason and he’s fine with it. There’s no problem there.
"He’s done smashing. He’s worked hard, which is what you want from them all. Jason’s in good shape and is working as hard now as he has for a while.”
Jewell says Town’s other Trinidad and Tobago international was offered a new deal a year ago but chose to continue on his current terms, which are up at the end of June: "Carlos was offered one last year but he decided to see how this season went. Carlos is in the same position as a lot of the lads who are out of contract.”
Meanwhile, recently released Blues defender Ãvar Ingimarsson is set to hang up his boots, according to former team-mate Ibrahima Sonko: "I had dinner with him before he left. When he told me he was probably going to retire, I was a bit sad because you don’t want to see your team-mate and friend leaving the game, especially the way he has been.
"The last game he wanted to do so well for the team but things didn’t work out. I did ask him if he was going to play a bit longer, but I think he has had enough.”
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