“I really don’t think..” – Carlton Palmer on Kieran McKenna future at Ipswich Town
McKenna has had a fantastic near two years as head coach of the Tractor Boys, which will surely lead to top flight interest at some point
Ipswich Town may not have won League One in 2022-23, but their current results are surely putting the rest of the Championship on notice.
Town were pipped to the third tier trophy by Plymouth Argyle and whilst the Pilgrims have had an exciting return to the division themselves, it is Ipswich who are currently level on points at the top of the standings with Leicester City.
The Tractor Boys did not exactly splash the cash over the summer, but head coach Kieran McKenna was given what he needed to improve his squad and it is clearly paying dividends in the early stages of the season.
McKenna is one of the most highly-rated young coaches in English football, having developed his craft at Tottenham and Man United before taking over from Paul Cook in Suffolk in late 2021, and he has recently been linked with taking over the Republic of Ireland national team should Stephen Kenny be sacked.
What is Kieran McKenna’s contract situation at Ipswich Town?
When arriving at Ipswich back in December 2021, McKenna signed a three-and-a-half year deal, which would have taken him up until the summer of 2025.
However, McKenna was rightly rewarded for his work and efforts over the past summer following Ipswich’s promotion from League One.
McKenna extended his contract at Portman Road by an extra two years, meaning that he is on the club’s books until at least June 2027.
And that likely means any club who does really want to try and prise McKenna away from the Suffolk outfit will have to pay a significant compensation package in order to at least enter negotiations with him.
Should Ipswich Town be worried about potentially losing Kieran McKenna?
Naturally, there will be interest in McKenna from the Premier League when the expected managerial merry go round begins, but ex-England international midfielder Carlton Palmer believes that the Town hierarchy should not be concerned as he thinks the Northern Irishman will stay loyal to the Tractor Boys.
“Ipswich Town are having a fantastic start to the season – another great win knocking Wolves out of the Carabao Cup,” Palmer said when speaking to Football League World.
“I know clubs like Wolves prioritise the Premier League so they make a lot of changes, but still you would expect the players that they’ve brought in to have serious quality.
“So, it’s credit to Kieran McKenna at Ipswich, and of course he’s going to get a lot of interest with people observing the fantastic job he’s done and is doing at Ipswich.
“But as I’ve said before, I firmly believe the owners will back him and they have thus far, so I really don’t think they need to worry about Kieran.
“I think he has a fantastic chance to take this club back to the Premier League, and what an achievement that would be if he won back-to-back promotions.
“I think they’ll back him again in the January transfer window, so it would have to be some offer to tempt him but also for the club to let him go.
“(If winning) Back-to-back promotions on your CV, you’ll go to cult status by getting the club back to the Premier League.”
