Town defender Leif Davis insists he is more ready for his second shot at the Premier League and says he is determined to prove why he is capable of playing at the highest level.

Two years ago, Davis was one of a handful of current Blues players to embark on the club’s first top-flight season for 22 years and stated towards the end of the campaign that he had lost confidence en route to an immediate relegation back to the Championship.

Following another runners-up finish in the second tier, Town are back for another crack at Premier League football under new boss Gary O’Neil, with the season’s curtain-raiser coming this Saturday at Portman Road against Sunderland.

Flying full-back Davis argued that another season in the Championship was hugely beneficial in his own personal growth and returns to English football’s top table with extra motivation to succeed.

The 26-year-old also revealed that he was regularly at Playford Road during the summer to ensure he is as prepared as he can be for the challenge that lies ahead this season.

“I spoke to Kieran [McKenna] when we got relegated,” he exclusively told TWTD during last week’s training camp in Germany. “It was good to have another year in the Championship, getting more experience, more game time, and just becoming a better person and player all round.

“I’m ready for that challenge now. I feel ready for it this time, I feel confident. I felt as though I’ve had a good pre-season and off-season as well. I spent a lot of time at the training ground when we were off for nine weeks, working hard and wanting to show why I am capable of playing in the league.

“I lacked a lot of confidence the last time. You’re going into the biggest stage in the world, you are going to lack confidence sometimes. You’re not always going to feel yourself all the time against the best in the world. You’ve just got to keep your head down, work hard, and hopefully this year will be a good year.

“You’ve seen what they’ve done. You’re playing against the best in the world, and to challenge yourself like that, you don’t want a better challenge. You see where you are and how good you are, and how good they are when you’re stepping on the pitch.

“Especially the likes of Man City, Liverpool, it’s incredible how good they are. You can see why they’ve won stuff, Champions Leagues, the Premier League so many times.

“To challenge yourself against the best is always the best as well.”

This campaign will be one of the later starts as a result of the World Cup, and victory over Queens Park Rangers on the final day of last season meant promotion was confirmed as early as May 2nd, leading to a 16-week break between competitive fixtures.

That has not prevented O’Neil training his players hard during a hot and dry summer, including last weekend’s trip to Germany where temperatures reached around 35°C for Saturday’s friendly with Union Berlin.

Davis said: “This has probably been one of the hottest pre-seasons I’ve done. In Ipswich, it’s been 30 degrees-plus every day. The good thing is it gets you fit, training in the heat gets you ready for that first game as it will probably be hot for the first game of the season.

“I’m looking forward to winter now and try and get the skin cooled down a little bit. But it’s been good, it gets you fit for the season and it’s been a good pre-season.”

Photo: TWTD