Ipswich Town have had a fantastic season since returning to the Championship, but their success may be tempered by some setbacks.
Kieran McKenna’s squad is contending for the division’s automatic promotion spots and hopes to break a 22-year hiatus from the Premier League.
However, it was confirmed on Friday that head of recruiting Sam Williams had left the club to join Manchester United following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ownership of the club, causing significant changes at Old Trafford.
Manchester United announce the arrival of key Ipswich Town figure
Manchester United has appointed Williams, who returned to Old Trafford after leaving in April 2022, as their new chief scout for the 17-21 age group as part of an academy scouting restructure.
He joins the club from Ipswich, where he served as head of recruitment, most recently alongside former United boss McKenna.
According to The Athletic, Williams’ hiring was spearheaded by United’s director of academy Nick Cox and director of scouting Steve Brown, and it is part of a series of reforms to the academy’s scouting department that began last year.
The overhaul of scouting at the academy level is something Cox and Brown have been working on for a while and predates the Ineos’ investment in United, and it comes just days after Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sir Dave Brailsford met with academy staff to give a presentation on how important the academy is to the club’s future.
Williams has worked in academy recruitment at Sheffield Wednesday and Bolton Wanderers. United regard the appointment of someone knowledgeable about academy football but with previous experience as head of recruitment at a Championship club as a coup.
Sam Williams’ Ipswich Town signings
Since Williams’ arrival, he has overseen multiple transfers at Portman Road as the club’s path to the Premier League has accelerated.
In January, they added four players to their squad to boost their chances of promotion, including loan signings Lewis Travis, Jerry Sarmiento, and Kieffer Moore, as well as the permanent signing of AFC Wimbledon striker Ali Al-Hamadi, who impressed in League Two.
Williams facilitated the arrival of a number of international players to Ipswich this season, including Leif Davies from Leeds United and George Hirst from Leicester City, while also maintaining his previous connection with Manchester United by welcoming Brandon Williams on loan and Axel Tuanzebe on permanent transfer.
Sam Williams’ exit could be the sign of things to come at Ipswich Town
While Ipswich fans will be pleased with the season so far, their attention will soon shift to a potential Premier League campaign as well as how to retain their best players.
According to journalist Alan Nixon, McKenna is on Palace’s list of potential candidates for Roy Hodgson, and speculation over the 37-year-old’s move to Selhurst Park has grown in light of Hodgson’s present troubles.
McKenna signed a new four-year deal in June that would keep him at Portman Road until 2027, but he has drawn interest from elsewhere during his time at the club, with chief executive Mark Ashton stating that there was interest in the coach during the summer.
In response to the speculation, McKenna told the East Anglian Daily Times that he is entirely focused on the next season with The Tractor Boys.
However, things might change in the summer if Town return to the Championship, and he may not be the only one receiving interest once the season ends.
According to The Football League Paper, West Ham were interested in signing Leif Davis during the January transfer window, and if his progress continues throughout the season, Premier League interest is expected to return in the summer.
When a team outperforms, those higher up the food chain will naturally attempt to take off some of its top performers, whether on the pitch, in the dugout, or behind the scenes.
That’s likely to be the case for the Tractor Boys, and it’s understandable if some Portman Road fans are concerned that Williams’ departure is only the beginning.
While several of Ipswich’s players are on long-term contracts, promotion this season could be critical if the club wants to keep its key players.
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