Blues striker Kieffer Moore has joined up with Rotherham United on their pre-season tour of Austria, manager Mick McCarthy having confirmed that the 24-year-old and right-back Josh Emmanuel, 19, are on the verge of loan moves to the Millers following Saturday’s 5-0 friendly win at Drogheda United.
Moore, who scored the Blues' fourth goal at United Park, was spotted training with the Rotherham squad evidently having linked up with them at the end of Town’s week in Ireland. Emmanuel was not spotted.
The Millers play Austrian side Floridsdorfer AC tomorrow and Hungarian team Soproni VSE on Saturday during an eight-day training camp.
Speaking after Saturday's match McCarthy said the move is to give the pair first-team football, which they won't get at Portman Road once the season starts.
"They both need to play games," he said. "And I don’t want Josh here as a substitute coming on and playing a bit part, he needs to go and play to improve, as does Kieffer.
"Neither of them will start in front of Jordan Spence or whoever else is starting up front. I think it’s really important that they get football.
New loan lad Kieffer Moore #rufc 👀👀 pic.twitter.com/4cw8nuOxz0– Stuthemiller (@StutheMillerman) July 10, 2017
"You benefit from getting week in, week out football. I remember it myself when you start and you play. Thankfully I got in the team and I was in every week and it just improves you every week.”
He added: "[Josh is] going until the January window and we’ll see how he does. Hopefully he’s ripping it up and we want to have him back. The only way he’s going to get better is by playing.
"They’re season-long loans but there’s a break clause in them. You’ve got to put that in because if you don’t then they get stuck there if they’re not playing or if they’re ripping it up and I want them back.
"Why would I even think about not having something to bring them back? But I’ll only bring them back if I want to play them.”
The rest of the Blues squad flew back to Suffolk yesterday and will be back in training at Playford Road today.