Szmodics: Every Boy's Dream Friday, 16th Aug 2024 18:33 by Kallum Brisset New signing Sammie Szmodics says the opportunity to play in the Premier League is a dream come true and relishing the opportunity to play at Portman Road as a home player for the first time. Szmodics signed for the Blues from Blackburn Rovers after weeks of negotiations, with the clubs eventually coming to an agreement on a fee of around £9 million plus add-ons. Town’s new number 23 has signed a four-year deal, and says he is relieved to have finally got the move done. “It’s been a long four or five weeks of negotiating back and forth, but I’m delighted to be sat here as an Ipswich Town player,” he told TownTV. “It’s been tough because I’ve been at pre-season at Blackburn and our season already started last week, so it’s been mentally and physically tough because you know you need to stay fit. “I knew there was interest from Ipswich so in the back of your mind you don’t want to get injured. It’s a bit of relief that we’ve finally got it done.” Colchester-born Szmodics says the switch ticked all the boxes and admitted the chance to move closer to home was an added bonus to playing at the elite level. He said: “There’s always been interest since I was a kid having grown up in Colchester. I feel like some people think there’s some rivalry between me and Ipswich but there’s not. I love playing at Portman Road and have scored a lot of goals at Portman Road. “It just felt right this time with the challenge of the Premier League and my young family being from Essex, it ticks all the boxes. After speaking with a couple of the lads here and Lewis Travis who was here last year, he just pushed me and said I’ve got to come and work under this manager. That’s something I can’t wait to do. “I’ve got a young family and we can settle back into the area. I lived and grew up in Colchester which isn’t far at all from here. I’ve travelled around and been at four other clubs, none of them have been round here so to get back down this way with my family. “If you’re settled off the pitch you’ll be able to perform on it, so it’s a no-brainer. There’s all these boxes that have been ticked as to why Ipswich Town suits me perfectly.” The 28-year-old has spent his entire career in the EFL, having made 313 league appearances to date. He says the chance to showcase his talent in the Premier League for the first time this season makes so many years of hard work worth it. “It’s every boy’s dream,” he said. “I still think I’m young and I’ve always said I’ll get to the top one day and I’ll play in the Premier League. “I found out the hard way when I dropped into the National League. It’s a good standard but when you’ve had a taste of the EFL and full-time football it’s not where you want to be. “I’ve always remembered where I’ve come from and with hard work and believing in yourself and having an arrogance that you’re good enough without being over the top has brought me to where I am. “It’s still a pinch myself moment that I’m going to be looking forward to a Premier League season. The Championship’s a great level with some great players and I excelled last season, I think I thoroughly deserve to get the opportunity here. “This is why you work so hard as a kid to get into this position. I’ve played for Ireland against Portugal and [Cristiano] Ronaldo and I think I’ve worked so hard to put myself in these situations and see if you sink or swim against the best. “I don’t think there’s any better opportunity than doing it with Ipswich. I’m looking forward to the big away games and to wearing the badge at Portman Road. “We know it’s a bit challenge and it’s something that we’re really looking forward to. We’re coming in as underdogs and that’s something I’ve thrived on. You want to shut people up and prove people wrong and that’s what I think we’ll do this year.” Szmodics has a good record as an opposition player at Portman Road, having scored for both Peterborough United and Blackburn in the past, engaging in some friendly banter with the Blues faithful. “When you get to know me, I work my socks off and I’m 100 per cent professional,” he said. “Maybe I deal with my nerves and football as laughing and joking with some banter. “As a Colchester lad, people think there’s a rivalry and think I’d never join Ipswich as I hate them. That’s obviously never the case, things are said on social media and every year there’s been talk of me coming here and for whatever reason it’s not gone through. “I’ve had some fun at Portman Road and I think I’ve scored every time I’ve played there. I’ve had a bit of banter with the crowd and I’d like to think they’ve had a bit of banter back, but there’s nothing more now I want to score at Portman Road for Ipswich Town. “It’s something that’s been a long time in the making and I’m over the moon to be sat here and looking forward to this season. “When I’ve played at Portman Road the atmosphere has been amazing. It’s a good place to come and play football as a visitor so I’m even more excited to play as a home player.” Last season, Szmodics finished as the Championship top goalscorer with 27 league goals, despite Blackburn’s relative struggles towards the bottom of the table. On his outstanding season last term, Szmodics said: “People ask me to put my finger on it and I can’t. I relished being the main man at Blackburn, I took on some responsibilities and it’s nice that people look to you to win games and score the goals. “I started off quite quick, I scored two in my first two and it gave me the platform. I had that positive mentality throughout and I don’t think we deserved to be where we were down there. “I just took it upon myself to save Blackburn. It’s a massive club with great fans and we didn’t deserve to be down there, but it was a great season for myself personally for the amount of goals I scored.”
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