Young midfielder Cameron Humphreys has insisted Kieron Dyer’s assessment of him as “the best midfielder at the club” did not put him under any extra pressure.
Former England star Dyer, one of many top players to graduate through the Blues’ academy, delivered his verdict after deciding to quit his coaching role at Portman Road late last season.
Humphreys said: "It was obviously nice to hear from someone like Kieron, who helped me a lot when he was the U23s coach at the club. He did a lot to help me and my game, and it’s nice to hear compliments from people who have played at such a high level, as he did in the Premier League and with England.
"But, at the end of the day, it doesn’t determine how successful I am. My focus is on improving all the time and learning from the players around me.
"Did it put me under any pressure? No, I just took it as a compliment. There’s always a lot of pressure on footballers, especially young footballers, so you don’t want to put any unnecessary pressure on yourself. It helped to boost my confidence but I never felt under any pressure because of it.
"Like I’ve said, Kieron was my coach and he did a lot for me and so did Bryan Klug, who is still at the club, especially when I was younger.
"Adem Atay, who left in the summer to join Aston Villa, was my youth coach and he was also a great help to me from the age of 12 or 13 upwards. They were all a big part of my journey and my progression into the first team environment here at Ipswich.”
Asked how he came to join Town, he added: "I was spotted playing for my local club and invited to come along to Ipswich for training at the training ground. I accepted and found that I was enjoying every session I attended.
"Luckily enough, they kept asking me back and it was an easy decision to make because I was enjoying it so much.
"My ultimate aim is to become a first team player and play regularly for the club at as high a level as possible.
"The club is going in a good direction and hopefully, if I can keep progressing, with the good coaching I am receiving and also the help from my colleagues, I can continue to improve as well.”
How would Humphreys describe himself as a player? He said: "I’d describe myself as an energetic midfielder. I like to get about the pitch and I like to get on the ball when I can. I’m always looking for the forward pass, the one that will create chances.
"The thing I’m working hard to add to my game, something that the coaching staff have put in a lot of time and effort to help me, is timing my runs into the opposition box.
"I want to be more of a threat going forward, to both score goals and create assists. That’s an area I’m looking to improve, my end product, but I’m looking to get better at every aspect of the game, so I’m learning stuff all the time.”
Humphreys has another string to his bow in that he can operate in more than one position. He explained: "I like to play in different positions and right the way through my time at the academy I’ve experienced different roles within the team, like left-back and left wing-back.
"It’s a different challenge because you might not see as much of the ball or you might have to defend in one-v-one situations a bit more often, but I still enjoy it and it all helps to improve my all-round game.”
There was talk about the youngster perhaps spending this season, or at least part of it, on loan, but he is happy to remain at Portman Road in the meantime.
He added: "We had chats about loans but it wasn’t something we wanted to push for. I’ve been able to train with the senior squad since the first day of pre-season training and I’ve really felt a part of the group.
"At the minute my focus is on trying to do my best for Ipswich and to force my way into the team. Then, if I can do enough to earn the chance, I will be looking to play well and hopefully have other opportunities to play more regularly at that level.
"The chance to go out on loan might come but my focus is on staying here and looking to progress.
"Loans can be a very good thing and we currently have Idris [El Mizouni] on loan at Leyton Orient and Elkan [Baggott] at Gillingham, and both of them are not just playing regularly, but playing really well for their respective clubs.
"For the right people at the right time, it’s definitely a path that a lot of players have followed to help their careers, but at the minute my focus is here at Ipswich and that’s where I am happy to be.”
Finally, Humphreys was asked how he was feeling about possibly partnering fellow midfielder Panutche Camara, signed from Plymouth at the end of the summer transfer window but sidelined until now by injury, in tomorrow’s Papa Johns Trophy final group game at Cambridge United.
He said: "He has been looking really good. He’s been back in training for about a week after getting over his injury and he’s been getting better and better with every session.
"I’m looking forward to playing with him when the time comes because he’s a really nice guy and we’ve had a few chats together. He’s fit now and ready to go, so he needs games and when he gets his chance, I’m sure he will do well.”