Loanee Bersant Celina was pleased to play the full 90 minutes and score his first Blues goal in last night’s 2-1 Carabao Cup defeat at Crystal Palace, a recurrent illness having hampered the start of his spell at Portman Road.
The 20-year-old, who is with the Blues for the season from Manchester City, initially picked up the bug shortly after joining up with Town at the start of July when he missed the opening pre-season friendly at Drogheda.
The Kosovo international, who was brought up in Norway, subsequently suffered a number of relapses and last night’s appearance was only his second since the start of the season, the first having come in the 2-0 Carabao Cup first round victory at Luton, when he created the opening goal for David McGoldrick.
"I was happy to get 90 minutes, and hopefully I won't get ill again so I can focus on working hard," Celina told the club website.
"The illness really took it out of me and I was ill about five times in six or seven weeks, so it's been really hard for me, but I'm confident I can get a run in the team soon."
Reflecting on his goal, he added: "I was happy to score at Palace. It was great play from Ben [Morris] to see that I was in the box and play it across to me, so it was an easy finish in the end. I know that I will get a chance to play, so I just need to take it.”
Celina, who spent last season on loan with FC Twente in Holland, is likely to be among the subs when Town take on Fulham at Portman Road on Saturday.