Town new boy Piotr Malarczyk believes his move to England will improve his chances of graduating to the Polish national team.
The 24-year-old defender has already represented his country at U19, U20 and U21 levels and is close to a senior call-up - he was almost called into the squad during the recent international break after a spate of central defensive injuries - which could lead to him being involved in next summer’s European Championship to be hosted by France.
Poland are in a strong position to qualify alongside leaders Germany from a group that also includes Scotland and the Republic of Ireland, against whom the Poles wind up their qualifying programme next month.
Malarczyk said: "I think I have a bigger chance of playing for the national team now that I am playing in England, rather than if I was still with my old team.
"If I play regularly and well for Ipswich I hope to get a chance. That is what I am working for, to do well for Ipswich and then play for the Polish national team.”
His first team experience with Town has been restricted to just 45 minutes as a half-time substitute in the 3-2 home defeat by Brighton last month, which came little more than 24 hours after signing for the club and meeting his new team-mates.
Malarczyk added: "It all happened really, really quickly. I arrived on the Friday and on the Saturday we had a game at home against Brighton.
"It was good for me to get involved straight away and not wait too long. It meant I wasn’t thinking ‘When am I going to play my first game?’. I wasn’t happy that we didn’t win but it was good to get an early opportunity.
"I am still living in a hotel while I try to find a flat and I think I will find something this week.
"It will be easier once I have my own accommodation but I don’t have any problems. The city is really nice and everyone at the club has been helping me if I have any problems, so it is really good.
"It has made life a lot easier for me having another Polish player, goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski, at the club.
"If I have some problems I can speak to Bart about them. My English isn’t great and I probably make a lot of mistakes but it’s not too bad either.
"It’s quite different over here, especially with the number of very skilful players in England.
"The main difference between England and Poland is that the games are really quick over here. The players are really strong as well, which is another difference.”
Manager Mick McCarthy likes the fact that Malarczyk can operate at right-back or as a centre-half and the player added: "I feel better in the centre. That is where I played most games in Poland but I can play in both positions so for me it is not a big problem, although I do feel better in the centre.”
Malarczyk skippered former club Korona Kielce in the first few weeks of the season and explained how the appointment came about. "Last season I was the vice-captain and this season the team chose me as captain when the former captain left to join another club,” he said.
"It was a big responsibility for me because it is not everyone who can be the captain. I saw it as a good opportunity to grow up as a player because I was not just taking responsibility for myself during games, but all the players in the team.”
Photo: ITFC