Daryl Murphy is close to rejoining the Blues for a third loan spell, according to reports in Ireland this morning. Murphy, whose Celtic contract is up at the end of the season, was with the Blues for the whole of the last campaign and the second half of 2009/10.

The 29-year-old midfielder or striker, who returned to training yesterday after a hamstring injury, is surplus to requirements at Parkhead and is understood to be keen on a return to Suffolk with his family having settled in the area during his most recent spell here.

Capped nine times by Ireland, Murphy, who had trials with the Blues when a Waterford United player in 2004/05 before opting to join Premier League Sunderland, made 32 starts and two sub appearances last season, almost all at left midfield, scoring four goals.

At the end of the campaign Paul Jewell said he was keen to sign Murphy on a permanent basis but wasn’t confident a deal could be done.

Speaking in July, he said: “I’ve spoken with Daryl’s agent a few times and if they want a fee, with his wages, we just can’t afford it. It’s no secret that Daryl’s on a good contract at Celtic.
“I thought he did well for us at the back end of the season. We would be interested in Daryl if the deal was right, but I get the feeling that it’s going to be an expensive deal for us to do.”

Photo: Action Images

cornishnick added 09:50 - Aug 28 I would be quite happy with this. What I don't get, however, is that there surely is a permanent deal to be done here, why all this loan messing about
0

muhrensleftfoot added 09:52 - Aug 28 Good news if it's true. Consistent performer, and versatile too. Gives us a bit extra height up front too. He may get more games up front with Chopra rather than out wide if he does join us again.
0

lawshallgirls added 09:52 - Aug 28 Hopefully means church is on his way too then. I get the feeling the Murphy deal is a permanent one and church is a loan. I think we either need..... Murphy and church Or something like Judge/gallager and a big striker like heskey
0

casanovacrow added 09:53 - Aug 28 cornishchick - "Speaking in July, he said: “I've spoken with Daryl's agent a few times and if they want a fee, with his wages, we just can't afford it. It's no secret that Daryl's on a good contract at Celtic. “"
0

StuartBrett8 added 09:54 - Aug 28 I'd have Heskey too, no one rates him at all, but he's a big old lump that will bully defenders and set up Chopra. His age isn't a factor as he never had any pace anyway :)
0

8ashblue added 09:55 - Aug 28 I like him but as has been said already he's hardly a key signed just makes squad bit stronger. PJ has lost the plot as despite all the evidence over his time at PR, the defencive problems are still there!! Neither Smith nor DD should be at the club, they're both slow, lack skills and IMO should be div 1 at best. The best PJ managed was Sonko and Collins but they were only short term. Fix it PJ or go

0

PSGBlue added 09:57 - Aug 28 Good addition to the squad due to his height, won a lot in the air last season. But I really hope this isn't one of those last minute desperate signings due to the fact we have no-one else coming in. Marcus, where has the £8M we got for Wickham gone? This time last season we were told that this money would be spent in the future, i.e now!
0

hadleighboyblue added 10:04 - Aug 28 this looks like an easy option for PJ . I know some people rate him , but for me he brought pretty average contribution to the team before , why can't we move on and find someone better - it's beginning to look like last minute panic loans again , which is not the answer . A target man and a central defender are needed and we have known that for a long time now - we need permanent signings , not loans .

0

8ashblue added 10:07 - Aug 28 PSG. Its gone on wages and fees plus the Club isnt doing well so losses need funding too! His height will be good as squad is tooo small and i'd prefer him in central role with Chops/Scotty feeding off him. That would leave space for width as i feel DM is best header we have and he reads game well. I'm hugely disappointed with JET and would rather see Carlos in wide role with new rb to support him. Still PJ is in charge so not likely to happen!

0

Pessimistic added 10:18 - Aug 28 Agree JimmyJazz.
0

warwickblue added 10:36 - Aug 28 I'm getting number 27 and "Boomerang" on my new shirt if this is true!
0

Lombokblue added 10:37 - Aug 28 He was OK last season but I feel like we're just going round in circles. When I see " surplus to requirements " I think of the DVDs I buy from the bargain bin and never watch.
0

Edmunds5 added 10:42 - Aug 28 He's not someone who is going to get you 20 goals a season but as people have said he's got a presence which we really do lack. He is also very hardworking, a Walters type player I suppose and this is valuable in my opinion . The reason we get hammered at times is because we have too many players who are at their best going forward and get caught out, Blackpool had three across the middle and Osbourne sitting which meant the two wide men could roam , we cant because we end up leaving too many gaps. Murphy may not get people off their feet with tricks like JET but he will put in one hell of a shift and be a 7/10 each week, he will give us a balance much more of a balance than if S.Davies came as he would do similar things too our other front players and not solve the defensive problem. When we do badly its often wingers that destroy us and are match winners, Murphy may not always be a match winner on the goalscoring front but his tracking and energy down the flank will give us a shape that will make us harder to break down. This is if he actually gets played wide left of course!

0

walberswick added 10:42 - Aug 28 What is up with Marcus Evans? Has he completely given up on promotion. No transfer budget, no new players, same team, same result. 15th. Why would anyone pay to watch this car crash?
0

ipswich61 added 10:45 - Aug 28 NO NO NO we dont want him,he's no better than what we have already got
0

debenturedave added 10:46 - Aug 28 Oh no ...not again...can we have someone new please...we have tried him twice with little real success... so can we please move onto someone else please , who hopefully will be a real success...there are loads of other players out there apart from him !!!
0

hogster1970 added 10:48 - Aug 28 well i have mixed feeling about DM like others he gives us height up front which what we need especially playing 442, on the left how ever what did we do last year, play hoof ball down to him all the time rather than playing from the back, we do need to mix it up a bit, for me also carson is waisted on the left he is a out and out right winger, and if given the ball at the correct time he can split defences with his pace, how ever all the times he is on the pitch and in a postion to makes some good runs out midfield just pussy foot around and only give him the ball when he is under pressure and cant do much with it, we need to pass beyond out wide men and forwards so they can out turn there marker and run onto the ball and they are away, you look at some of the best wingers in the world and the best teams thats how they play expecially when on the counter attack , but i think if used wisely then DM could plug a bit of hole but alas with out setting the world alight, unlike inces boy god he was awsome, and again just look at the balls they fed him with, and thats what we aint doing, nuff said realy, oh and we defo need a CB despardo

0

Urchin added 10:57 - Aug 28 I think this wont do any harm at all- its not the best but he does give us some height options on the left. We could do worse but i agree with many in that i would still like to see new faces. Sneaky suspicion in my mind that Marcus Evans wont release any money at present. Wouldnt be suprise to see PJ removed and new monies made available to new manager. in which case hope its his best mate 'Arry

0

Lightningboy added 10:59 - Aug 28 Was half expecting this move or maybe Wickham. As for the defence,Swansea are offloading Gary Monk - he would be just what we need at the back - great organiser and a great captain..can someone tip PJ off.
0

cookra added 10:59 - Aug 28 Good bench player to come on and be a target man, I wouldn't want to see him taking Carsons place on the left. Last year quite a few games depended on Murphy because we kept playing route 1 football. I feel since he has departed that we play football now, and look at different options other than the big boot and hope for a nod down.
0

tearle1974 added 11:04 - Aug 28 To be truthful, DM is a useful player but with only 4 goals over 33 games last season it does not justify his high wage demands. It sound like this is the only striker that PJ can sign at the moment. I am sure in the lower leagues we can find players that would be hungrier and would score more goals. Iain Hume from Preston, Clayton Donaldson from Brentford, Dean Bowditch remember him at MK Dons and Danny Kedwell from Gillingham could be of some threat. So come on PJ send Steve McCall out and stop wasting your time on players of old, if they were good we would be playing Premier League football by now.

0

Blue041273 added 11:23 - Aug 28 Why do I feel that we are being played for mugs again? It's clear that Murphy has no future at Celtic and has made clear that he would welcome a return to Suffolk where his family is settled. BUT he has a lucrative contract with Celtic which, understandably, he does not wish to give up. So Celtic, unlike ITFC with Jimmy Bullard, decide that they want a financial deal to their advantage rather than favouring Ipswich or the player. Thus instead of writing off the last year of Murphy's contract they agree to a season long loan with us paying say 50% of the player's salary. Result: Celtic effectively get rid of a player they don't want relatively heaply; PJ gets his man at a cost which may be less expensive than proposed earlier in pre-season; Murphy gets his move to Suffolk without loss of earnings due on his current contract. On paper everyone's happy. But ITFC have another player, an expensive one at that, on the books who in all likelihood will be gone at the end of the season if not before. Another expensive gamble which smacks of desperation not dissimilar to signing Jimmy Bullard this time last year. That said he is a good player; I just wish we would utilise the financial resources available a bit more wisely.

0

walberswick added 12:00 - Aug 28 29 year old, just started training, hamstring injury.......
0

ipswichtil1die added 17:10 - Aug 28 I don't think this is too bad. Like most people I'm pretty neutral about him definitely don't think he's a bad player but also is never a stand-out player. But the main advantage is as most people have said a bit of height up top (we don't have anybody decent in the air attacking wise at the moment) also probably most importantly gives us better squad depth. So long as the youngsters get a run out on a consistent basis I think the signing is fine

0

Blogs 297 bloggers

Ipswich Town Polls