Town have completed the season-long loan signing of Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips.
The 28-year-old underwent his medical last night with the clubs having agreed a deal yesterday, which will see the Premier League champions continue to pay a proportion of what’s reported to be his £140,000-a-week wage.
The deal is a major coup for the Blues, Phillips having been a regular for England as recently as last year and overall having won 31 full caps, scoring once.
"This is a day I’ve been waiting a number of weeks for now and I’m very happy to be here,” he told the club site.
"I’ve had some great conversations with players I know here and also with the manager, who I have obviously heard a lot about, and I’m excited to be here and be part of his team, playing how he likes to play the game.
"The conversations with Kieran McKenna and Mark Ashton have been really good and I followed Ipswich’s season closely last year, so I know the journey the club has been on and it’s a great story which I’m now excited to be a part of.
"I want to play as many games as possible, enjoy playing football again and help the team win as many games as possible in the Premier League.”
Boss Kieran McKenna added: "We are very happy to have Kalvin here and he is a fantastic signing for the football club.
"He is of course a high-calibre, experienced midfielder who has played at the highest levels of the game, in both club and international football.
"He’s had a fantastic career up until this point and we believe he is going to be a big addition to the group.
"Kalvin has much to offer us in terms of his qualities both on and off the ball, and he is a really humble and likeable character. He has been a key member of a newly-promoted team in the Premier League before and of course made a big impression for Leeds United during that period.
"Like all players who come here we want to try and help them improve, whether that’s a younger player or one with more experience. That’s a big part of our culture and we’re sure Kalvin can make some big steps with us to help him and the club have a really positive season.”
Leeds-born Phillips, who will wear the number eight shirt, has had a frustrating time since joining City for £45 million in the summer of 2022 from his hometown club, making only two league starts and 14 sub appearances for the Premier League champions, then spending the second half of last season on loan at West Ham where he started only three top flight matches in addition to playing five games from the bench.
Phillips is the first player to have won England caps to join Town since another ex-Leeds man, Lee Bowyer, in the summer of 2011.