Bersant Celina has revealed his desire to remain an Ipswich player after his season-long loan from French club Dijon expires in the summer.
And the Kosovan international, who is in his second temporary stint at Portman Road, says he will feel the same even if Town’s promotion dream is not realised during what remains of the current campaign.
Asked about his future, 25-year-old Celina said: "I just want this club to get promoted and I’ll come here. Hopefully, that’s my goal. I want to come back to England to play my football and especially here at Ipswich.
"It doesn’t mean we have to win promotion for that to happen but it’s obviously what we want. If it doesn’t happen this season, with the manager we have now I would expect it to happen next season.
"I have played a lot of games for this club and there is a strong connection between us. I really feel at home here and I’m enjoying it. I’m happy, which is always important, and we are doing our very best to bring success to the club.”
Celina joined Dijon in September 2020 and signed a four-year contract, so if he is to return to Town a transfer fee will have to be agreed between the two clubs.
Presumably, with Dijon being relegated to Ligue 2 last season, they might be willing to part company with the player and his wages.
Equally, if Town secure promotion back to the Championship, it would provide a financial boost and with it leverage for them in any negotiations, although the new owners have underlined their ambition to succeed and would probably be keen on a deal even if they are still in League One next term.
Certainly, the majority of Town supporters would be keen for Celina to sign permanently. He is one of the front-runners for the Player of the Year accolade after scoring five goals in his 25 league appearances this season, eight of them from the bench, while he has also provided several assists for others to find the net.
Meanwhile, Town’s play-off hopes will be boosted if they can secure victory at fourth-placed Oxford United on Saturday. The ninth-placed Blues are six points adrift of Sunderland in sixth and trail Oxford by eight, so all three points are likely to be required if they are to have any chance of closing the gap.
Celina added: "We definitely are confident and we believe in ourselves. We know we have to win a lot of our remaining games but we also know that other teams, our rivals for the play-off places, will drop points as well. We must do our best and hopefully we will be there.
"It is an exciting time for everyone at the club and of course our supporters. We have been working hard in training and playing well in games, while one thing we don’t lack is belief.”