MICK’S GETTING SICK OF CUSTARD PIES...
MICK MCCARTHY’S bid to strengthen his Ipswich Town squad has been hamstrung so far, and the manager believes there are a plethora of reasons new faces have yet to come to Portman Road.
The Tractor Boys have been unable to secure any incoming deals in January yet, though Luke Varney has already made the switch to Championship rivals Burton Albion.
And with Daryl Murphy also departing back in the summer, there is a sense of urgency for the 57-year-old to do some business before the window slams shut.
“We’re still looking for strikers and so far we’re not having any joy. We’re just getting the same custard pies in our face at the minute,” said McCarthy.
“I could give you a litany of excuses. Not excuses actually, just reasons. They haven’t got their signings yet, they haven’t got a big enough squad, they need to keep someone for cover with the African Cup of Nations coming up.
“There are loads of reasons why. And they are legitimate reasons. I’m not giving them as excuses. They are all the reasons I have used in the past.”
Rotherham’s 26-year-old forward Danny Ward and Cauley Woodrow, 22, of Fulham are both rumoured to be on the radar, with McCarthy keen to do business early in January.
But the former Wolves manager admits he would not be surprised if it was an eleventh hour enterprise, citing his experience at how the month usually plays out.
He said: “The ones who have a player that people want will be asking for the maximum and I don’t blame them.
“Sometimes it gets near the end of the window and it’s almost inevitable they’ll go. When they do go they tend to go for a bit more than has been asked and a bit less wanted, then it’s like a pack of cards going over.”