Blues boss Paul Jewell says owner Marcus Evans remains as committed as ever but admits that there’s not a huge amount of money to spend at present. With the Championship moving towards a Financial Fair Play break-even model, Town are keen to operate within their means going forward having seen other clubs suffering from overstretching themselves.

Jewell said: “I’ve mentioned it lots of times, we lost David Norris to Portsmouth 18 months ago because they could offer him better wages. You look at Portsmouth and Glasgow Rangers, it’s not a bottomless pit.

“We’d all like money to spend, we’d all like to improve the squad straight away but I’m big enough to know that at the moment there’s not a huge amount of money to throw at it.

“The owner is as committed as ever, but sometimes you need to give youth an opportunity. I’ve been here for 18 months now and I think we’ve got to start getting players who are going to be here for the next three or four years, rather than getting players who are going to be here for a year and are maybe past their best.

“We’ve got to try and get players that we can still improve and want to be part of Ipswich for the long-term future, rather than the short-term future.”

The Blues manager has said that he has failed to land some of the players he has targeted this summer due to players’ wage demands and clubs wanting fees higher than Town have been willing to pay.

He says the Blues have pushed things as far as they can but that there is a point where you have to pull back: “I think we have gone a little bit more, then when it goes to that little bit more, you want a little bit more again.

“Somewhere along the line you have to say ‘This is what we’ve offered’. We’re playing Blackburn and teams who have come down from the Premier League who have a huge advantage over us because of the parachute money that’s spent, but football has to be careful, it can’t just keep throwing money at it.

“I’m happy to go along with building a squad. Maybe last year we went down the way of saying ‘OK, we’ve got players who have played at the level and above’, maybe now we’re going to get players who are hungry to play at the level above and even beyond it.”

He says having too big a squad can cause problems and a small squad has its advantages but as things stand, his options are rather too limited: “We’ve got a good team, a good first XI, what we need is those three positions at least to just improve the squad. No disrespect, but against Bristol Rovers we had kids on the bench who are not quite ready.”

Photo: Action Images

bontcho added 08:26 - Aug 16 "kids on the bench who are not quite ready" I'm assuming he means Cormac Burke but who else? Joe Whight? Joe should be getting to a back up left back level. Byron Lawrence? Might be a little early but sounds very promising and i'd like to think he's ready for sub appearences. And if Jack Ainsley isn't ready yet to be part of the squad i don't think he ever will.
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oldbri added 08:39 - Aug 16 http://thetwounfortunates.com/ttu-season-preview-2012-13-financial-questions-at- paste this onto your browser for a certain type of view.interesting read.
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dirtydingusmagee added 09:13 - Aug 16 lets face it ,despite all the assurances from Evans and Clegg about ambitions ITFC are going nowhere with them .Unless a real ''big spender'' were to take over the club [can you honestly see that happening ]we will remain a club ticking over in Championship, with more chance of relegation than promotion .
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Urchin added 09:40 - Aug 16 Oldbri - thanks for that - interesting reading
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pazelle added 09:41 - Aug 16 Get Lee Martin's contract renewed ASAP!
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Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 09:43 - Aug 16 I'm coming over to Marcus' way of thinking to some extent, which seems to be based on a longer-term strategy. I reckon some of these clubs that are still throwing massive amounts of money into buying and paying players will come unstuck. My three (interdependent) suggestions for success are these: 1) Maintain high sporting ambitions. No-one is going to be attracted by a club that settles for less in this regard. 2) Increase income: find ways to expand the fan base and provide good value for money on all services, from entry fees to cost of pies etc. 3) Develop young players of our own - If you can't buy 'em, make 'em. // There are signs that Marcus is in fact already aware of the points outlined in my brilliant plan, although I have to say there is still much to do regarding point no. 2! COYB!

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RaymondovicBlue added 09:59 - Aug 16 Is it just me - or does anyone else see the irony of having "The ghost of Jimmies past" over-shaddowing PJ's work on the touch line as he talks about time to play the youth (the same youth he wont play cos he sys they are not ready ??!! And as for ME commitment - he has put in more millions than he has taken out ... loan or no loan ... and had he not done so we would ALREADY have "Done a Portsmouth or a Rangers" ! Give the guy some appreciation and in any case ... he aint going to pull the plug until he chooses to and that will either be because he sells a successful club at a profit or because the likes of you and me hound him out in a hate campaign - neither are close to happening just yet ! Finally - agree totally - we have a very (VERY) good first 11 as seen at Bristol game ... but yes, the bench looked very weak to allow for any amount of regular squad rotation or injury cover Time for work!!

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Guthrum added 10:04 - Aug 16 Yes, there are players (and clubs, agents) demanding big fees, but it will always take time for some people to adjust to a new world, especially when the old one was so much to their advantage. In reality, there have been very few "big money" signings in the Championship this summer. The majority of players have moved on free transfers. OK, the strictest penalties for ignoring FFP may not be imposed this season, but most clubs have seen the way the wind is blowing, seen how unsustainable the Pompey model is, and are no longer "splashing the cash" to try to achieve promotion - and, of course, even the "big spender" strategy has by no means ever been guaranteed to work unless, maybe, you're prepared to go up to Man City levels. Maybe it's time for the "Why isn't our club paying enough?" fans to catch up to the new reality, too.

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Cheshire_Blue added 10:16 - Aug 16 The possible sale of Cresswell will put this strategy to the test. Are we building a team for the future or developing young players for selling on ?
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algarvefan added 10:17 - Aug 16 PLEASE ALL READ Olldbri's link above...thank you Oldbri fantastic article and would help most fans understand our financial situation!
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dirtyboy added 10:58 - Aug 16 Our financial position is fine as long as one thing remains...Marcus Evans has an interest in ITFC. I think he's looking closely at our neighbours Peterborough, and learning...
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BillBlue added 11:41 - Aug 16 Yes, an interesting article Oldbri. Thanks for the guide. COYB
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Tractastic added 12:19 - Aug 16 Nice one Oldbri.Every town fan should read this well written article. Certainly opens your eyes.
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greenkingtone added 13:23 - Aug 16 Good posts above. We fans must not simply base our support predicated on promotion to the Prem. Instead we must value the football club and enjoy every match win or lose.
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AndyUK61873 added 13:25 - Aug 16 That's a great read Oldbri, the inner working of the Evans Group to sustain us as basically a "business anchor" with 66m of debt must be complex. I can only hope that FFP rules help all teams improve the bottom line and we don't become a 2 league system like some of our european counterparts.
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idrinkbeer added 16:51 - Aug 16 Oldbri - thank you for the link to that insightful article, it has opened my eyes to some of the shadier aspects of our financial situation. I already understood that ME was using the club as a means of reducing his tax losses, i believe this to be common business practice and therefore a sensible thing to do, however i had no idea that our debt had piled up quite so high since his takeover which is very worrying. As long as ME remains commited to the club then his and our interests are shared, but should he ever have a change of heart (like, for example Max Griggs at Rushden & Diamonds) then we'd be in big trouble. Rushden went from mid table in league 1 to the conference, and then liquidation in less than ten years, and their debts were around 2% of what ours are. Lets hope we can get promoted soon and put these fears to rest! On a different note, im delighted to see the club moving towards a sustainable business model, its something which has needed to happen in English football for a long time.

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bluey123 added 19:54 - Aug 16 More idiots on here thinks Evans done a good job £72m debt when he took over £32m an increase of £40m 2 of the worst managers ever no players only rubbish no one else wants .
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bluearmy4life added 21:15 - Aug 16 Great link and info OLDBRI.
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Sindre94 added 22:30 - Aug 16 In jewell we trust!
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