Sunderland are reported to have joined the chase for ex-Blues loanee Luke Garbutt, a free agent since being released by Everton earlier in the summer.

According to the Sunderland Echo, the Black Cats are keen on left-back Garbutt, who spent 2019/20 at Portman Road.

Wearsiders’ boss Phil Parkinson is said to believe that Garbutt, who has been rumoured to be a Sunderland target on social media for a couple of days, would fit into his system.

The 27-year-old, who is believed to be abroad on holiday at present, is understood to be yet to make a decision on his future with a number of options on the table with clubs both in League One and the Championship thought to be interested.

Town are among the sides to have spoken to the Harrogate-born full-back, who scored six goals during a successful spell with the Blues in 2019/20, this summer with manager Paul Lambert keen to bring him back to Portman Road on a permanent basis.

Speaking to TWTD a month ago about the likelihood of Garbutt returning, general manager of football operations Lee O’Neill said: “There’s no secret in the fact that he was on Premier League money, so for us to achieve anywhere near what he would possibly like going forward is going to be quite hard for us.

“But he is a player that we brought in on loan, he did fantastic for us, we really like him and we would love to have him at the club.

“Whether we can get to some kind of agreement, only time will tell. I’m sure he is waiting for options as well, to see what comes his way off the back of a good season.

“I think it’s one we’ll definitely monitor and we’ll try and do the best we can to get the player secured, but I don’t know is the answer to that. A lot determines what happens over the next few weeks.”

Garbutt himself said in June that he wasn't ruling out extending his time at Town.

“Hopefully I can get to a point where I’ve got a decision to make on a number of clubs," he said.

“That’s not to say that I don’t rule out a permanent move to Ipswich if they were to offer me something through the summer because I really enjoyed my time here. I would never rule that situation out.”

Photo: TWTD

martin587 added 17:22 - Aug 5 The lad has a lot of potential but let's be honest here he is not ours and I doubt we could afford his wages. However it would be a shame if we lost out on him because I felt he fitted into the team.We must just be patient on the transfer market as there are plenty of free's on the loose and I feel sure we will be seeing fresh faces very soon.🤞🤞
8

TractorRoyNo1 added 17:30 - Aug 5 Mustn't blow are limited funds on s journeyman fullback, we need a another goalscorer and a centre back
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Cakeman added 17:45 - Aug 5 Good player but I agree with TractorRoyNo1 as we should not blow our funds on one fullback. There are loads of players available just now including I believe James Husband who could do a decent job and who would be cheaper on wages I would have thought. We only need a couple of new faces to hopefully blend in with our youngsters.
3

Surco72 added 19:06 - Aug 5 Spend money on Andy king and Pilkington wages both released and we will win this league , goals and assists from midfield is what we have been missing for years
4

Michael101 added 19:22 - Aug 5 He,s from Waitrose we only buy from Lidl end of.
0

Lathers added 19:28 - Aug 5 It wouldn't be good to lose him to a rival, would prefer it if he ends up in the Championship. He was the stereotypical ‘brains in his boots' footballer. One of our better performers last year but zero intelligence. Agree we need to use whatever funds available to strengthen with a CB, LB and a proven L1 or L2 goal scorer. Getting Lankester and KVY back fit will be like signing too top draw players.

5

sydneytown added 19:50 - Aug 5 He started out ok got a good freekick but he dropped off after christmas and some of his corners were awful so not too bothered if we dont sign him
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KiwiBlue2 added 20:46 - Aug 5 A very good player by League 1 standards. However unless he is prepared to agree to a substantial drop in wages I cannot now see it happening especially if he is attracting attention from Championship clubs. I am still very keen on a new left sided cb and proven striker but someone like Andy King would certainly provide a boost to our midfield which despite being well stocked needs more quality. Interesting to see how things unfold over the next few weeks........

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cressi added 22:14 - Aug 5 A better left sided midfield player average defender at best get a big lump with a bit of mobility up front
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Saxonblue74 added 22:23 - Aug 5 We seem to get a little hung up with ex players looking for a club, many of whom were not that good first time around! Garbutt was decent for us but let's face it, if he wanted to be an ITFC player the deal would be done by now. He'll never kick another ball for us.
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Carberry added 12:42 - Aug 6 'I think it's one we'll definitely monitor...', the translation of which is 'No chance of signing him'.
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