Freddie Sears has bemoaned the close season loss of so many experienced players from the Town squad inherited by new boss Paul Hurst from predecessor Mick McCarthy.
Asked if the current squad contained enough players of Championship quality and know-how, the 28-year-old striker said: "I’m not sure, to be honest. Just look at last season and how we’ve lost a lot of good players.
"I know the standout players are Waggy, Garns and Webby, but there are others as well.
"Callum Connolly, Bersant Celina, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Dominic Iorfa — they are proven Championship players and a few of them have also played in the Premier League.
"The new boys have come in, they all have different attributes and different ways of playing, but sometimes it doesn’t click straight away.
"It takes time and unfortunately at the minute we don’t have that time. We’re bottom of the league — we’re the worst team in the league at the minute — and it’s down to us to change that, to try to get everyone pushing in the right direction.
"It’s tough but we’ve got to stick with it. The next three or four games are really important.”
Next up for Hurst’s much-changed side — he made 12 new signings before the August transfer deadline — is tomorrow’s trip to Elland Road to face a Leeds United side beaten just twice all season and who, under new boss Marcelo Bielsa, currently sit fourth in a typically congested Championship table.
Sears has sympathy for the players recruited by Hurst, particularly those stepping up from Leagues One and Two, a move he made himself in January 2015 when he joined from Colchester.
He pointed out: "It was different when I came here because I was on my own and there were more experienced players around at the time. I was coming into a team of men, all Championship players, and it was pretty easy to come in. For the first few games I was on the bench and then I worked my way into the team.
"But at the minute there are four or five lads who have joined us and come straight into the side. It’s not their fault, it’s not anyone’s fault, but it’s hard. But it’s football, we’ve signed these players and they’ve got to be ready.”
With Town sitting bottom of the table, having won just once in 14 games under Hurst, Sears understands why fans are so frustrated, a growing number voicing their dissatisfaction at the end of Saturday’s home defeat to QPR, a result that means supporters have only had two league wins to cheer at Portman Road this calendar year, the most recent just over six months ago.
Asked if he shared their concern, the striker replied: "This is a tough league to be honest with you. My first two years here were fantastic — we finished sixth and seventh — but after that it has been a bit of a struggle. I’m not sure we can compete with the top six teams in this division any more.
"You want to try to compete and get up the league but there’s so much money being spent at this level. It’s like a mini Premier League when you look at the teams at the top and there’s also Aston Villa, with all the money they have spent and they’re still not up there.
"It’s a really tough league but we need to do what we can and we must stick together. I feel sorry for the fans because it all seems to be going the wrong way at the minute. But it’s football and we need to stick at it and have a real good go over the next few games.”
Sears agree that tomorrow’s game represents a huge challenge. "They are probably one of the best teams in the league at the minute and it’s always tough going to Elland Road anyway,” he added.
"But at the same time we’ve got nothing to lose. I don’t think there are many people expecting us to go there and get a result, apart from the 24 players in the squad and the coaching staff.
"You’ve got to go into every game believing you’re going to get a result. We rode our luck a bit when we won at Swansea but in the end we played well and got the result we deserved.
"In the game at Birmingham we were a bit unlucky, 2-0 up but just couldn’t see it out, and to be honest at the minute playing away suits us better.”
On a personal note Sears revealed he has been struggling to overcome an injury sustained before a ball had been kicked in anger this term.
"It has been a frustrating season so far,” he said. "I picked up an injury — I tweaked my groin a little bit — in the warm-up before the Blackburn game and played on. After that I was struggling for four or five weeks with a groin injury, so it’s been a bit hit and miss really.
"I’ve not been fully fit, been left out of the side and I’m glad to be back now. I’m training well and feeling good, looking to push on.
"A goal would be nice, that’s what strikers are there for and I want to help the team, but the most important thing right now is getting wins.
"It doesn’t really matter who gets the goals and we’d take a scrappy 1-0 every day of the week at the minute.
"We’re playing with one up front and it’s not easy. On Saturday I was trying to win headers against two 6ft 4ins guys and it was tough.
"Swansea was different and I think the approach at home has got to be a little bit different maybe.
"Away from home you can sort of afford to play on the counter attack a little bit but at home we need more of a creative spark and to take the game to the other team, rather than wait for them to take it to us.”