Ipswich Town column: Kieran McKenna’s Blues must sign well in January transfer window

Happy New Year everybody. I think I'd go as far as saying 2023 was one of the best ever when it came to supporting Ipswich Town.

This famous football club has had many successful years in its history and although 2023 didn't include a major trophy, it was thoroughly entertaining throughout and finally saw Town claw themselves out of League One.

After a magnificent 2023, Town started 2024 with a trip to Stoke which will always be described as a ‘tough place to go’.

Could Town do it on a rainy Tuesday night in Stoke? No, and sadly we couldn't do it on a Monday afternoon either.

On paper, a clean sheet and point away at Stoke shouldn't be seen as a bad thing. But given Town had a man advantage for 25 minutes, you can't help but feel slightly disappointed we weren't able to leave the Bet365 Stadium with maximum points.

A new year means new things. New opportunities. New challenges. New diets (if you ate too much like me) and if you're a football fan it means the opening of the January transfer window, which always brings some fun.

Town utilized this window excellently last year and arguably the four signings they made were the difference makers when it came to gaining automatic promotion.

Fast-forward 12 months and Town find themselves in the exact same position. Second in the league, with the need to now push on further if they are to get over the line.

Of course, this is a different division and the clubs we're competing against now are far superior to the ones we were up against last year, which means Town will need to recruit well if they are to keep up. I think we will.

The summer window was good. But, nobody saw us having the start that we have had and now we're here, the ambition has got to be to stay there.

I think we'll get it right and have complete faith in Mark Ashton and Kieran McKenna to get exactly what we need.