Town boss Kieran McKenna confirmed Bersant Celina returning to Portman Road was of “big interest” to the Blues over the summer, the Kosovan international having joined Turkish Süper Lig side Kasımpaşa on Monday to end a lengthy transfer saga.
As previously reported the Blues had been in discussions with Celina, 25, for much of the summer about a return to Portman Road for a third spell but ultimately without success.
We understand Town made no new contact after Celina’s move to Kasımpaşa initially broke down a fortnight ago before he returned to Turkey at the start of this week.
The former Manchester City trainee has joined Kasımpaşa on loan for the season with a view to a permanent switch next summer with his Dijon contract running to the summer of 2024.
"Bersant was a player who I really enjoyed working with, and everyone enjoyed having him here, supporters and staff alike,” McKenna said.
"It was something that we explored in the summer and I think the club did everything they possibly could, had a lot of conversations with his club and with the player, and it was something that was of big interest to ourselves and to the player as well, but in the end it wasn't possible.
"That's football. That's the way it goes. You're not always in control of these things as a buying or interested club or as a player.
"So, it's a good move hopefully for Bersant, hopefully he's got some big years left in his career and we wish him all the best, and I'm sure he'll do well there and who knows what will happen in the future.”
Asked whether he is still looking for a player who plays similar roles to Celina, McKenna added: "We’re keeping everything open, the players we have are versatile, the likes of a [Tyreece] John-Jules, who has played three or four different positions, Marcus Harness has played three of four different positions and Conor Chaplin and Sone Aluko have played different positions across the frontline.
"We have versatility there, we have lots of attributes to fit our style but we want to keep adding certain attributes and certain qualities to the team.
"I don’t think it’s impossible that we see further additions in that department but certainly at the moment we feel comfortable with what we have, certainly in those inside forward positions behind a central striker.
"But again, versatility and being able to change how we play is very important and that’s why we’ll continue to be active and look to improve until the end of the window.”
The transfer window closes on September 1st, more than a month after the unusually early start to the season. Does that give McKenna a good chance to assess his squad on where there might be areas to improve?
"I think it’s useful, I don’t think it’s necessarily about looking at the first few games because I’m pretty clear in my head about where we’re strong, what attributes we have and where we could possibly make additions,” he said.
"But it’s useful in terms of it seeming like it’s quite late in the window with the season starting a week earlier, so it does mean that you have five weeks of the season almost and maybe nine games before the window closes.
"It leaves it a little bit longer, it means that you’re protected a little bit if there’s any big injuries, touch wood, in the early part of the season or anywhere where you feel like the plan changes because of things that are out of your control.
"But in general, our plan internally has been pretty clear from the off-season on what attributes and what areas we wanted to add and that’s not going to change in any rush decisions off the back of one or two games.”
McKenna confirmed fans shouldn’t expect any additions before Saturday’s game at Forest Green Rovers: "No, nothing is coming in today or tomorrow.”