Blues manager Kieran McKenna says it was a joint decision between the clubs and Armando Dobra for the Albania U21 international to return to Town to train due to his lack of involvement with loan side Colchester United.

Dobra has been with the League Two U’s all season but hasn’t featured since January 4th. Overall, the 20-year-old has made 13 starts and four sub appearances during his loan spell, scoring twice.

The forward appeared as a late sub for Town’s U23s in the 1-0 defeat to Hull City at Portman Road on Tuesday.

“He’s been back training with the U23s a bit for fitness and playing time really,” McKenna explained. “He wasn’t getting the minutes at Colchester that we hoped for lately.

“It was a joint decision between the two clubs and Armando that it would be best served for him to come back and train here for the meantime and get some more minutes in the U23s.”

Colchester boss Wayne Brown says Dobra remains a member of his squad and may still get selected.

“Dobs has got a year left at Ipswich so we're just giving him an opportunity to maybe put eyes on him, with the new staff that they have there in the 23s environment to give himself the best chance of impressing them as well as us,” he told the Colchester Gazette.

“We know what Dobs can do and he's very much our player, until the end of the season.

“When called upon, Dobs is ready but it's about equality and a bit of rationale to the lad. It's about giving him his best chance in his career.”

Dobra, who is contracted until the summer of 2023 with the club having an option for a further season, can’t formally be recalled from his loan spell with Colchester outside the transfer window and so is ineligible for the Town first team for the remaining five fixtures.

Photo: Matchday Images

BeattiesBackPocket added 14:59 - Apr 7 This is the thing when people moan on here about how our youth don't get a chance at the club but then struggle at a lower league club to even break into the side but expect that person to get a chance in ours. Fact of the matter is we've really not produced any great talent for a long while who deserve to be in the first team. The whole youth category policy a has made most of it this way but also the past 14 odd years of penny pinching and selling off our best talent to Spurs or Man City has attributed to this. You can't have the best youngsters coming through if the real talent has already been sold off. Hopefully the new manager and owners will look into this more which it appears they will.

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Gilesy added 15:25 - Apr 7 Apart from Wolfenden, Downes and Dozzell, but I agree with the thrust of your point.
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dirtydingusmagee added 16:38 - Apr 7 At the time i was one wanting him to stay at the club, i thought he was a busy / lively player.He also seemed very keen to play for town and get somewhere with first 11. Sadly he was moved to what in my opinion was a poor struggling club in the U's, and dosnt seem to have progressed as a result. Hopefully KM can/will see something in him and get him on track. Good luck to the lad.

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Whos_blue added 21:03 - Apr 7 Much as I liked Wayne Brown as a player with us, I really can't make head nor tail of his quotes in this story. It sounds like he was put on the spot and just made stuff up to avoid saying he was crap!
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Kirbmeister added 17:37 - Apr 8 He's not good enough for league 1.
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ringwoodblue added 22:29 - Apr 11 It was a ridiculous decision to loan him out to Colchester in the first place as he wasn't going to learn much playing with the Ipswich old boys. Anyway, it's great that he is back and like Woolfie, given the right coaching, I'm sure he could do a job for us next season.
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