Football Season Guide

Ipswich are the longest serving side in the Championship and they desperately need something to excite them this season as they appear to have gone through the motions for the past few years. There has been change though. Mick McCarthy has left the club after several seasons at Portman Road and his replacement is former Shrewsbury boss Paul Hurst. It is a step up for Hurst who has done well in League One. He has made some lower league additions in the form of Crawley's Jordan Roberts and Peterborouh's Gwion Edwards. Also arriving is midfielder Trevor Chalobah on loan from Chelsea. So far the signings have been solid but not overly exciting so it is perhaps difficult to see Ipswich taking off this season. They have been able to keep goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski who has now signed a new three-year contract following major interest from Birmingham City. The Pole has been the club's best player over a number of years so keeping hold of him is significant. Ipswich have been frustratingly inconsistent over the last few years so the main thing now will be to find consistent form over the season. It is certainly a challenging job for Hurst now and does not offer immediate success.