Town general manager of football operations Lee O’Neill says the Blues are looking to add to their squad during the January transfer window but admits their efforts will be hampered by the League One salary cap.

Under the cap, which was introduced in August, clubs are restricted to a squad of 22 senior players aged over 21 with a wage ceiling of £2.5 million, although with salaries agreed prior to its introduction treated as a maximum of £113,000 a year.

Town are already at those limits following their summer business, which means there would have to be departures before more senior squad members can be added.

Players aged below 21 at the start of 2020 don’t count towards the salary cap.

“We are speaking to clubs about players at the moment and we are hopeful that we will be able to add one or two new faces to the squad this month,” O’Neill told the club site.

“We are restricted in what we can do because we are at the limit in terms of the salary cap.

"Bringing in young players on loan is one avenue and that is something we are looking at. There will have to be a degree of juggling if we want to add someone over 21 but that is also an option we are exploring.

“We also have to be aware that we have got a number of players coming back from injury as well so it’s about getting the balance right but we are certainly working on adding to the squad.”

Yesterday, Town recalled midfielder Idris El Mizouni from his loan spell at Cambridge United.

O’Neill is still feeling the effects of Covid-19 having tested positive before Christmas along with manager Paul Lambert and a number of players.

Elsewhere, former Blues winger Gary Roberts has rejoined Accrington Stanley from from Welsh side Bala Town.

Roberts, now 36, left Stanley to join Town initially on loan in October 2006. He went on to make 45 starts and 14 sub appearances, scoring four times, before moving on to Huddersfield in July 2008.

Photo: TWTD

runningout added 19:54 - Jan 4 our welcoming committee doesn't know a sensible signing if it smacked them in the face. Decent signings will recognise clueless interviewer/s and go elsewhere. I'm afraid it's true. Heard first hand
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Carberry added 20:47 - Jan 4 Suffolkboy, have you been finishing off the Christmas sherry? I just don't recognise your heartwarming critique of the management of our club. This owner voted against a salary cap, was that an indication of his fiscal responsibility? We are over £100m in debt, is that due to financial good management? The owner can't sell the club because we are in League 1 and he wants a big lump of his money back, does that reassure you of a bright future? O'Neill, I think you will find has no credentials or experience to run day to day business at a football club, so where you get the idea he's a safe pair of hands is beyond me. I'm not smelling the same roses as you are. Perhaps you could explain where they grow?

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shakytown added 21:17 - Jan 4 What we need to add is a couple of midfielders who can play hard for 90 minutes and not spend half the game walking around with their hands on their hips pointing at everyone else.
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Billericay12 added 21:18 - Jan 4 Additions will be either loans or U21 so unaffected by wage cap. I just keep hoping all the postponements buy us time to get a couple back from injury.
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istanblue added 22:59 - Jan 4 Fack off O'Neill. Everyone knows this is just a smokescreen for Evans to hide behind and justify why he refuses to invest in the club. #EvansOut
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Linkboy13 added 07:15 - Jan 5 Spot on Shakytown been saying this for ages we haven't got a midfielder apart from perhaps Downes who is prepared to do the dirty stuff and win the ball back . Not really sure what Dozzell offers apart from the odd good pass. If we added two strong physical midfielders it would take the pressure and you would see the best of Downes and Bishop.
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BettyBlue added 08:16 - Jan 5 What do Chambers, Judge or Skuse currently add to our team? What have the players who are injured added to this seasons team? How much money have we spent on players that don't want to play or don't know how to play....
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BettyBlue added 08:20 - Jan 5 We haven't got any money because we'll have to pay up the contracts of a whole team of injured ineffectual has-beens' at the end of the season.
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dirtydingusmagee added 08:31 - Jan 5 BettyBlue have you missed your medication again ? lighten up .
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BettyBlue added 09:56 - Jan 5 Sorry everyone. I'm changing medication. Happy New year to ITFC, the players and the fans. Lets do better this year.
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Ipswichbusiness added 10:28 - Jan 5 1) the January transfer window opened, 2) Paul Lambert went “really, really” quiet, 3) Joey Barton, the Director of Football and two coaches left Fleetwood yesterday. It could be coincidence, it could be that I've had some of Bettyblue's medication, or we could be getting Barton as our manager.
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ringwoodblue added 11:53 - Jan 5 Ipswichbusiness - I hope you're wrong as Joey Barton is not the kind of replacement we need for Lambert.
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Cloddyseedbed added 12:39 - Jan 5 We find ourselves in a poor league with a poor playing squad with a poor manager, with players who many of them on higher wages contribute nothing as they are always injured. Add to that the spend cap so we can't sign anyone any good and can't sell anyone as they aren't very good or injured. We have a club with huge overheads in running costs and a ground we don't own and a debt to the owner of nearly £100 million. Our younger players aren't strong enough or good enough and our older players are either injured all the time or nearly past it. I'm trying to see some positives of ITFC football club for us fans or why players would want to come here, but can't. We are where we are because of the owner and his policy's over the years. Not the fans fault. Can't really fully blame the manager as he is employed by the owner. Where do we go from here?.......more likely down than up in my opinion. Much as it galls me to say so.

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Bluearmy_81 added 14:00 - Jan 5 It's tragic Cloddy. If ITFC were a company, the CEO would have been dismissed due to his abject failure years ago. It's such a shame the same can't happen to Evans. Unfortunately there are many on here who, bizzarely, still hold a flame to Evans (possibly since that ridiculous PR scripted interview) and don't seem capable of shifting their view. Some are critical of Lambert but still can't bring themselves to criticise the landowner despite the fact he inexplicably gave him 5 years!! Comedy gold

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dirtydingusmagee added 14:41 - Jan 5 BettyBlue, Thats much better, but dont go and get over excited and join the Happy Clappers lol. or swimming with Dolphin , Happy New Year
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Carberry added 15:01 - Jan 5 Quite right Bluearmy, but unfortunately we don't have a CEO and that's one of the issues with the club - there's nobody running it. Just look at who is on the Board of Ipswich Town Football Club according to the official club website, Marcus Evans and Mark Andrews. However, that appears to be incorrect as Companies House has another director apart from the owner and Andrews - a Dutchman, Maarten VAN OS, who appears to be active as a director of 25 of Marcus Evans's companies, as well as a director of IPSWICH TOWN FOOTBALL CLUB COMPANY LIMITED , IPSWICH TOWN STADIUM COMPANY LIMITED, IPSWICH TOWN FINANCE COMPANY LIMITED, IPSWICH TOWN PROPERTY COMPANY LIMITED and IPSWICH TOWN COMMUNITY TRUST. What a tight little group we have supposedly running our club.

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Bert added 16:05 - Jan 5 Betty Blue's medication has worked wonders. Can you give some to BA81..... for repetition.
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Bluearmy_81 added 16:42 - Jan 5 😴😴😴
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Razor added 10:18 - Jan 6 Isnt Joe Garner now available having been released by Wigan----may be worthh a punt?
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