Blues boss Mick McCarthy has confirmed that he will be looking for a right-back to replace Bradley Orr, who plays the final game of his loan spell with Town away against his former club Bristol City on Saturday. The 30-year-old will return to Blackburn with new manager Michael Appleton keen to take a look at him.
McCarthy says that he feels 18-year-old Elliott Hewitt isn’t yet ready to take over as a regular fixture on the right of the defence: "Elliott’s got a really bright future, but he’s not played that much football. I’d like some more experienced cover, who has played more games.
"Putting Carlos Edwards or Luke Chambers in there, you’re kind of filling in and I haven’t got that many players anyway. I want somebody to replace Bradley when he goes back.”
The Town boss says he has been delighted with Orr since he joined the club on loan in November: "I think he’s been excellent, he’s been a really good addition, I’m very sad to be losing him. He had a tough start, the Leicester game, and by his own admission he wasn’t happy, he didn’t play well.
"It’s not easy coming in and playing with new players, but he has been excellent, certainly in the last month or six weeks, he’s been terrific, really, really good.”
He says the former Newcastle trainee would be interested in coming back at a later date: "I think he’d be open to a return, I don’t think he actually wants to go back.
"He’s enjoying playing. But I said to him, circumstances have changed [at Blackburn], there’s a different manager. If he goes back and he’s playing he’ll be happy, he’ll be able to see his twin boys, be able to stay in his own bed and he won’t be displaced as he is now.
"But isn’t it lovely that he really does want to stay and play with us because he’s enjoying it?”
McCarthy says he’s hopeful of adding to his squad before the transfer window closes at the end of the month, but says nothing is imminent: "I hope so, but I can’t tell you anything.
"That’s not because I don’t want to, even if I could I wouldn’t, but on this occasion I’ve got nothing to tell you rather than I don’t want to.”
Regarding Nottingham Forest keeper Lee Camp, who has joined Norwich City on a free transfer, the Blues boss wouldn’t be drawn on whether he had held talks with the Northern Ireland international: "I wouldn’t tell you if I had.”
But he says there have been no deals which have broken down with players having been close to putting pen to paper at Portman Road: "We’ve never had anybody that close or in the building and it’s not happened."
McCarthy says he has no new injury or illness issues in his squad ahead of Saturday’s trip to Bristol City: "Everybody’s fine. No problems.”