O'Leary: Premier League is the Target
Wednesday, 7th Apr 2021 18:07

New Blues chairman Mike O’Leary says it’s crazy that a club the size of Town is in League One and that promotion to the Championship and then to the Premier League is the target of the new ownership, who took charge earlier today.

O’Leary, 68, was the chief executive officer at West Brom between 2002 and 2004 and was on the board at Oxford from 2014 to 2015.

“Ipswich Town has a fantastic heritage,” he told iFollow Ipswich. “It’s a fabulous club and I can remember from my early youth the success they had.

“They had two of the greatest managers football has seen [Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson] and it’s crazy that a club of this size is in League One.

“We are here to help the club climb the football pyramid. Promotion to the Championship as soon as possible is the immediate aim. It’s possible this season but if it takes another year or so, so be it.

“Then if you are in the Championship, you take stock and see what is needed to give you a chance to get into the Premier League and they are the goals that we will set.

“A club of this stature - if not in the Premier League - should be knocking on the door of the Premier League pretty quickly and clearly that is what we aim to achieve.”

O'Leary confirmed that Town will be appointing a new CEO with Bristol City's Mark Ashton understood to be the man ear-marked for the role.

“Although our US backers will be visiting the club, they will not be involved in the day to day running,” he added.

“The club will be run by a CEO and also partly by me - the British end if you like. We will be the management team.

“The CEO will run the business on and off the pitch with responsibility for every facet of it.

“We hope to make an appointment at some point soon. I can’t be more specific than that because you can never be sure of the process. It could be a week or two, it could be a month or so but as soon as we can make the right appointment, we will.”

Photo: ITFC

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factual_blue added 18:12 - Apr 7 Good to see a Chairman wearing a tie.
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Pencilpete added 18:14 - Apr 7 The new Chairman has already reached out to the fans more in 1 day than Marcus Evans did in his first 10 years !!
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aas1010 added 18:19 - Apr 7 Onwards and upwards ! Massive player clear out ! COYB ðŸ‡ºðŸ‡¸ðŸ‡ºðŸ‡¸
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Kropotkin123 added 18:20 - Apr 7 Welcome.
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CaptainAhab added 18:21 - Apr 7 First job, clear out the deadwood. Exciting times to come though!
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Bluearmy_81 added 18:23 - Apr 7 As it should be. Was never going to happen under ME. Best day as a town fan in 20 years!!! Join Evans is out of ITFC!!! on facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/305709660097210/?ref=share
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chepstowblue added 18:24 - Apr 7 Oh God he's at it already.Top10 in league1 may be the first objective, with the occasional shot on target !!
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bluesteal74 added 18:33 - Apr 7 So bloody happy about all this Great news, dreams do come true the take over has happened just hope the rest of my dreams come true and we get the hell out of this league asap Please ðŸ™
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90z added 18:40 - Apr 7 With what the consortium have done with Phoenix rising becoming the most successful team in the USL im very much excited & looking forward to what they can bring to Ipswich Town.
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BlueArrow added 18:42 - Apr 7 Welcome Mr Chairman and Mr President
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itfchorry added 18:42 - Apr 7 Welcome Mr O'Leary to this truly wonderful Football Club - Please make it be respected once again.
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MerseyBlue added 18:44 - Apr 7

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to him speak - he seems to be realistic and optimistic at the same time. Hopefully he will give the manager time to really craft his own side, and like he said, the sooner we get ourselves out of this league the better, but if they fix the structure and it is more of a gradual improvement, I'm happy to go along with them for the ride.

Incredibly early days, but it is great to finally feel some positivity and excitement about my club again - COYB

johnwarksshorts added 18:45 - Apr 7 These guys mean business. I'm really upbeat and feel very positive about the future of our great club. Mr O'Leary fills me with confidence. COYB I T I D!
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SheptonMalletBlue added 19:04 - Apr 7 Chambers must be soiling himself!
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buzbyblue added 19:05 - Apr 7 Finally someone that understands football!
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DoseOfReality added 19:12 - Apr 7 What is going on .. it took us 8 years to get a photo of Evans & another 3 to listen to him .. Achieved more in a day than Evans has in the last 10 years .. THE BOREDOM IS OVER !!!!!
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NormEmerges added 19:26 - Apr 7 It's going to be very interesting to see if there is any player reaction against MK Dons!
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Wicksy added 19:32 - Apr 7 Isn't it great to feel optimistic again? Had forgotten what it was like!
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KernewekBlue added 19:34 - Apr 7

Dear Mr O'Leary,

Welcome to the sleeping giant that is Ipswich Town Football Club.

You have joined a fantastic club, with a proud history of past success, with a fanbase who adore this club and who will wholeheartedly support your every true effort to take us back into The Championship and beyond.

For far too long, these fans have been starved of entertainment on the pitch, starved of the success we crave and the necessary resources to push this club forward. We've had to swallow empty promises, year on year, from an owner who has been responsible for some of the worst, most disastrous decisions in this club's history.

People can try to mitigate Marcus Evans' failures by quoting the sums of money he threw at the club but, can they also detail any massive successes he bought with those funds? Unfortunately, that's what comes of not letting your manager do his job unhindered.

The manager, the person entrusted with the day-to-day running of the playing squad, training, tactics, formation and team selection, should always oversee and have the final say on any deals to bring in new players. The manager is the one person who has the grounding and the experience within the game to know what any possible new recruit will give him on the pitch, how he might improve the team, his strengths and weaknesses, if he's worth the transfer fee and wages being asked for or not.

If we can learn one thing from the Marcus Evans era, then let it be this... please DON'T EVER think you know better than the manager about who/what he needs on the pitch than he does! If you want to conduct the playing staff hiring and firing yourself, as Marcus Evans seemed to do, just sack the manager now and appoint yourself in charge, otherwise, have faith in the football man, give him the financial support to succeed, take a step back and watch us fly.

We're all hungry and past ready for a new success story, I just hope with all my heart that this is it.

If your heart is in this journey as much as ours is, we'll support you all the way!

Europablue added 19:38 - Apr 7 Who was the chairman before? I know that is kind of a dumb question, but when Sheepshanks was chairman, that was clear. Who has moved on due to the take over?
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itfcserbia added 19:54 - Apr 7 Oh, first day and an interview with the man! There he is even in flesh! How will we ever get used to this?
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Karlosfandangal added 20:04 - Apr 7 Mr Cook said that it would be an exciting summer. He knew more than he was letting on. Lambert said that Cook was in his seat and Cook was always the one the new owners wanted.
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algarvefan added 20:18 - Apr 7 Cautiously optimistic, seems a really nice guy. The futures Blue.
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Terra_Farma added 20:36 - Apr 7 Not gonna lie, I am like a kid at xmas. Wow, did we need something like this.
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tractorkent added 20:45 - Apr 7 At least Marcus Evans found a buyer before he walked.I still.think thec12: million pound he gave as tranfer funds many moons ago was wasted.
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