Liverpool have reportedly been told by Ipswich to double their offer for sought-after youngster Connor Wickham to £11 million if they are to have any chance of signing the 18-year-old striker.

Big-spending Anfield boss Kenny Dalglish has apparently offered £5.5 million for the player currently on England duty at the European Under-21 Championship in Denmark and with Sunderland having also declared an interest — and not been put off by the asking price — he would appear to have no alternative but to substantially increase his offer.

Ironically, having sold midfielder Jordan Henderson to Liverpool for £20 million, the Black Cats have money to spend, although it remains to be seen whether or not Wickham would be interested in a move to Wearside, even if the two clubs were to agree a fee.

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is a long-term admirer of Wickham, having made a vain bid to sign him two years ago, offering a lump-sum payment and FOUR players — Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards, who were subsequently bought by then Town boss Roy Keane, as well as Dean Whitehead and Daryl Murphy, who later moved to Portman Road on loan.

Wickham is said to have told friends he would prefer a move to Liverpool and Dalglish is widely expected to improve his initial offer in an attempt to persuade Ipswich to do a deal that would amount to a new club record, dwarfing the £6.5 million paid by Newcastle for Kieron Dyer in 1999.

Elsewhere, it is being reported that newly-relegated Birmingham City are considering a £2 million bid for Town midfielder Grant Leadbitter, and that Ipswich have all but secured the signature of central defender Ivar Ingimarsson, 33, following his release by Reading. As previously reported by TWTD, the player was at Portman Road last week for talks and a medical, and it appears only the necessary paperwork is to be completed.

Former Ipswich striker Jordan Rhodes, 21, is said to be unsettled at Huddersfield, where he was top scorer last season. Rhodes is anxious to clarify his situation after Millwall had a recent £700,000 bid for him rejected.

Another former Town star, 32-year-old midfielder Tommy Miller, is said to be interesting Charlton Athletic after his release last month by their League One rivals Sheffield Wednesday.

Meanwhile, ex-Town winger Bobby Petta is being asked to consider a comeback with Scottish part-timers Alloa Athletic. After three seasons at Portman Road the 36-year-old Dutchman moved to Celtic 12 years ago and was a big favourite during five years at Parkhead. He is now back in Scotland running a fitness business and has been asked to come out of retirement by another ex-Celtic player in Paul Hartley, who was recently installed as Alloa’s new manager.

Photo: Action Images

im_marcacus added 13:15 - Jun 12 They are offering us £2M to NOT see the ball hit the first man at every set piece? Hand. Snapped off. Everyone knows we should keep Connor, what else is there to add?
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dubzyluvschips added 13:35 - Jun 12 ;-)
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Sparky85 added 13:35 - Jun 12 Firstly - bluearmy71 love your work Secondly, and probably to annoy some of you but if Liverpool offer 10 mill for Conner then i would laugh all the way to the bank. Yes a great prospect with a long future ahead but that money for an unproven championship striker could be the difference for us this year. I dont want him to go but that money just cant be turned down.
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barnettractor added 13:44 - Jun 12 I believe that ME, SC and PJ have done a great job securing our most valuable asset, Wickham, to a longer deal. We are now in no rush to sell him and when we do sell him we can be sure we will get a decent fee to help bolster the squad in several positions. Furthermore, as a statement of intent, if it's true LFC have only bid £5.5m for Wickham, I would love the club to issue a Newcastle style statement using the term 'derisory offer'.

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LancsBlue added 13:47 - Jun 12 Connor looks likely to end up at Liverpool at some point. Lets hope that Sunderland, Newcastle, Tottenham etc. put bids in too so that Liverpool have to at least match them thus driving the price up to an acceptable level. Its worth noting that Arsenal who have a track record of buying young players (Walcott, Ramsey etc) have dropped their interest. Wenger is a pretty good judge. There is no guarantee that Connor's value will continue to increase. Injury, loss of form or simply failure to progress could equally see his value drop. £10m in the hand now would be good business, especially if add-ons and sell-ons are included to give us more if he does progress. £10 million will go a long way at our level and we now have a manager that I trust to use it well.

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IITFC1948 added 13:50 - Jun 12 I would be gutted if we sell Grant of all the players we have been linked with how many have been midfielders? and how many have we got who could do a better job? Forget Bullard we have no chance of getting him .Chopra said"i know some of the players there and they tell me Ipswich are a side with ambition" Grant would be one of them ex Sunderland
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andygizmo added 13:54 - Jun 12 Bostonusablue. Completely agree. Wickham may or not make it huge. Take the £11m now with a couple of agreed loans and rebuild the side because it definitely needs it. I still think Jason roberts will end up here along with a few of the other targets. I wouldnt be overly surprised to see another centre half, fullbacks. left sided midfield and centre midfield and 1 other forward. We need a clear out and need to stop being precious about certain players. The goal is premiership and not being sweet and nice. Go on Jewell .... change them while you have the chance.

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confoosed_dot_com added 14:01 - Jun 12 @Blue army71 - best comment ever. An actual sense of humour, and aslo a fair assessment. Although I would have to Diss DissBlue who was surely also trying to be funny with his "why only £11m" comment - for an unproven championship player??? Seriously?
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DiamondGezzer added 14:03 - Jun 12 My belief is, that Ipswich are asking 11 million in the hope of ending up getting him for 10 + add ons. I read somewhere that Sunderland were prepared to offer 12million, but I guess Connor would sooner go to Liverpool. A Shelvey loan would obviously sway the deal. Personally, I would sooner he stay for another year, although, 10 million and a year back on loan would I'm sure suit all parties concerned [ Connor wouldn't have to sit on a bench and would gain another years worth of experience ]. Still, we shall soon see.

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IITFC1948 added 14:08 - Jun 12 Don"t get carried away with this linked again crap ,its only Mel Henderson taking storys off the TWTD web site
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Daleyitfc added 14:10 - Jun 12 £8 million x 2 = £11 million, but only working in base 15 ....
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ElvisMariner added 14:14 - Jun 12 Bluearmy71 ........Great Post :-D
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howdonblue added 14:15 - Jun 12 Cheeky sod dalgleish .. If Henderson is worth £20 mill you better keep going ... Bloody joker
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arc added 14:21 - Jun 12 All I want is to see Wickham play a full season up front for Town. Just one season. Is that asking so much?
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Crock added 14:34 - Jun 12 We should only sell Wickham if Petta makes a comeback for ITFC.
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StochesStotasBlewe added 14:47 - Jun 12 Wickham for 11 million + Shelvey for a season on loan, yes please. Keep Leadbitter, will come good again & need snappy midfielder to do the dirty work in the middle.
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Bluearmy71 added 14:58 - Jun 12 @Sparky85 @confoosed_dot_com @ElvisMariner Thanks guys :),,,,,,,I hope you read it in Franks voice lol ;)
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churchmans added 15:12 - Jun 12 anything over 10mill for a crap player would bite there arm off!
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RegencyBlue added 15:13 - Jun 12 Leadbitter had his best games for us when Norris wasnt playing so is worth holding onto. Having said that he should be offered a new contract now and if he wont sign it we need to sell. As for the Liverpool 'offer' for Wickham - kind of confirms the typical scouser stereotype. Thieving b@stards!!!!
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Doctor_Albran added 15:37 - Jun 12 Whilst 11 mil would be fantastic, Danny Graham (championship top scorer) only went for 3.5m, so is 5.5m such a bad offer? If we can get 11m we should bite their Hands off. And in respect of Rhodes (yawn), anybody comparing him with Billy Sharp needs their head read - if we buy Rhodes we deserve the mediocrity that will follow - Billy Sharp is a proven goal scorer at this level, not a kid viewed through rose tinted glasses (by some deluded fans) who is yet to really prove himself in Div 1.

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sammyitfc added 15:39 - Jun 12 Wickham - If any deal is to be done £11m is the minimum with add ons and a 20 or 30% of the next sale made should be added so if he really excels and is sold for like £20-£30 million then we get a good amount of money. Leadbitter - Although I feel he may excel next season £2m is a good offer but if we reject it we would want him for 2 or 3 more seasons rather than let him leave for a free next summer. Rhodes - We let him go for next to nothing and have paid the price. All I can say on that one really.

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Infineteregress added 15:44 - Jun 12 Any offer for Connor not in double figures, unless it's a loan back/ player exchange, shouldn't even be given the time of day. As for Leadbitter, personally I'd keep him as I reckon he can still be one of the best midfielders in the division when on form.
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blues1 added 15:55 - Jun 12 before i say anything else let me just say that ,yes, like pretty much every1 else id like to see connor play a whole season here. but, lets get real here now. we are a championship club,who have a young player with great potential, but an awful lot still to learn, & if we were to be offered £11m plus for him, there is no way that we could turn down that kind of offer. nor would any other team in this division, particularly when u consider how long weve been in the championship. its simply, whether we like it or not ,a no-brainer.

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ITFC4daprem added 16:05 - Jun 12 good price but but get wickham shevley and packeko on loan
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havinit69 added 16:06 - Jun 12 Did I not say towards the back end of the season that Connor Wickham was worth nothing like the £10m plus that you were all demanding?! Teams would be mad to spend more than £5m/£6m on a player that has yet to fulfill any of his 'potential'! He is NOT the next Wayne Rooney and ipswich should seriously consider the offer, maybe hold out for a bit more but £10m+ aint gonna happen.

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