Keeper Vaclav Hladky has failed to agree a new contract with the Blues and is now officially a free agent.

The 33-year-old had been in discussions with the club regarding new terms since January and has said on a number of occasions that he wants to stay at Portman Road.

However, he and his representatives have been unable to agree a new contract with his current deal up yesterday.

Town’s offer has remained on the table and in an interview with Czech TV channel Canal Plus Sport on Tuesday he said his future would be decided this week.

Now Canal Plus Sport is reporting that no agreement has been reached and Hladky is a free agent.

The Brno-born keeper joined Town from Salford in the summer of 2021 and went on to make 70 starts and one sub appearance for the club.

Having been second choice behind Christian Walton for most of his time at Town, an injury to the former Brighton man late in pre-season last year saw him start 2023/24 as the regular number one.

And with his confidence on the ball becoming a key element of the way the Blues played, Hladky played all bar the dying seconds of Town’s Championship promotion campaign, earning plenty of plaudits along the way.

Portman Road’s keeping ranks could be set for a major overhaul this summer with the Blues known to be looking for a new number one.

Walton could potentially move on for first-team football, while Cieran Slicker has said the next stage of his development is a move on loan with Scottish clubs Kilmarnock, Ross County and Partick Thistle all believed to be keen.

The Blues have been widely linked with Brighton’s Carl Rushworth, while Luton’s Thomas Kaminski was reported to be a target yesterday.

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Photo: TWTD

delias_cheesy_flaps added 10:19 - Jul 1 I won't miss the regular hospital balls by Vaz to our players! To be fair he saved our bacon a couple of times but also contributed to some dropped points. I won't be missing him between the sticks if he leaves.
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barrystedmunds added 10:24 - Jul 1 No great shakes! Celtic bound and CL football.
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ArmaghBlue added 10:25 - Jul 1 He obviously has something lined up, otherwise he is just over valuing himself.
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blues1 added 12:05 - Jul 1 Some,really poor comments on here, after what hexdid for us last season. From what ive heard, the issue was he wanted a 3 year deal, but the club were only offering 2. So guessing neither side would budge on that. Good luck to him. Whoever he joins will be getting a very good keeper.
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Sir_Monte_Carlo added 12:39 - Jul 1 It's different for goalkeepers. If we are interested in a new No1 and he sees the probability of the bench all season, I can't blame him.
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RyanF182 added 16:33 - Jul 1 Would've let someone harvest a kidney for free to get him out of the squad when he first played. Last season would've let someone harvest a kidney for free just to keep him injury free. Gutted is an understatement, however, the club almost definitely already have a list of suitable replacements. Walton looked the more likely to be second choice, not Vaz. He made saves that put us and kept us 2nd. Wish him the best.

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therein61 added 17:36 - Jul 1 Mr 10% has sorted out where he's off to now i liked Vas and he had a very good season but not without some shaky passes(hospital balls that the premiership class Skuse used to give team mates all the time but big gob loved him!!) so we look for a keeper or two and after Omari and Ben signing our intent is shown and we are a good club to join.
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Facefacts added 19:35 - Jul 2 There was a bust up between Vas' agent and Mark Ashton. Nothing else makes sense. Especially when Vas had a chat with the manager and all was going to be fine. I still think we should have given him what his agent wanted. We need two TOP quality keepers to replace him.
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