Ipswich confident of beating Sunderland to £20m signing

Ipswich Town hit the jackpot in the summer of 2024 when they swooped to sign winger Jack Clarke from Sunderland for a transfer fee of £15m.

That may not have looked like the case after he failed to score in 32 appearances in the Premier League in his first season in East Anglia, but he proved his worth in the 2025/26 campaign.

Clarke was one of the stars of the Championship season with a return of 16 goals in 46 games for Ipswich as they finished second and earned promotion to the top-flight.

The English forward created ten ‘big chances’ and racked up 6.32 xA, showing off his creative talents, but his teammates let him down with wasteful finishing, which meant that he only registered one assist.

Clarke will now have another opportunity to show the world that he can compete at Premier League level next season with Kieran McKenna’s side.

Ipswich confident of beating Sunderland to £20m star

Having already snatched the 25-year-old wing wizard away from Sunderland, the Tractor Boys are now looking to beat their rivals to a player who could be the new Clarke.

Both clubs are said to be looking at a Championship winger who can score and create goals on a regular basis, just like the current Suffolk-based star.

According to journalist Alan Nixon, via his Patreon, Ipswich Town are confident that they can complete a deal to sign Millwall forward Femi Azeez in the upcoming summer transfer window.

The reporter claims that the Tractor Boys are the team leading the race to sign the Championship attacker, after they failed in an attempt to sign him in January.

Nixon adds that McKenna’s side are hoping to strike an agreement with the Lions for a fee of between £15m and £20m for the 24-year-old winger.

It was reported in March that Sunderland, Leeds, and Brighton are among the other teams battling it out with Ipswich for his signature.

How Femi Azeez can be the new Jack Clarke

Ipswich signed Clarke off the back of a haul of 15 goals and four assists in the 2023/24 campaign for Sunderland in the Championship, as he proved himself to be too good for the second tier.

Azeez is now in a similar position at Millwall after he was named in the Championship Team of the Season for the 2025/26 campaign, thanks to a return of 11 goals and seven assists.

His numbers are not too dissimilar to what Clarke produced for Sunderland before Ipswich paid £15m to sign him, albeit he is a left-footed right winger and not a right-footed left winger.

The Nigerian star can be as effective as the Tractor Boys star, by outperforming his xG and creating high-quality chances on a regular basis, and they can play in the same team on either flank.

Azeez ranked in the top 2% for ‘big chances’ created (18) among right wingers in the Championship, whilst he also ranked in the top 7% for completed dribbles (47) and the top 3% for chances created (67), which further illustrates his attacking quality.

Ipswich, though, also need players who can track back and defend for the team because they will be in a relegation battle in the Premier League next season.

Among his positional peers in the league, Azeez ranked in the top 4% for duels won (144), the top 9% for defensive contributions (101), the top 3% for possession won in the final third (30), and the top 7% for clearances made (33).

The Nigerian forward is more than willing to get stuck in to help his side out defensively, making key interventions to help out his full-back, and that is why he could be an astute addition to a squad that is set to be fighting against the drop.

Overall, Azeez looks like he would be a fantastic signing for Ipswich as a Clarke repeat who can offer quality on and off the ball, which is why Sunderland should be disappointed that they are losing the race to sign the forward.