Ipswich Town have been fairly quiet in the transfer market this summer, but there’s one player they simply have to sign and they can get him for a bargain fee.
So far, the Tractor Boys have waved goodbye to star man Liam Delap who joined Chelsea in June. It was a good deal for Ipswich, but leaves a big gap in their team.
Meanwhile, the main Ipswich signing so far this summer has been the capture of midfield enforcer Azor Matusiwa from Rennes.
But, there is another area of Kieran McKenna’s squad that needs improving, and this Slovakian creative master could be the key to a successful season.
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In a bumper piece from Slovakian outlet Sport Net, Banik Ostrava midfielder Tomas Rigo is praised for a number of attributes, with some huge comparisons made.
Reporter Ivan Mriška likens Rigo to former Arsenal and Chelsea man, Cesc Fabregas, as well as German legend Bastian Schweinsteiger. Meanwhile, Ostrava expert Michal Kvasnica says, “The comparison to Marek Hamšík is perhaps even more fitting.”
Those comparisons are pretty strong commendations for the 23-year-old, but it’s no less than Rigo deserves after making his big breakthrough in the Czech football league last season.
Kvasnica predicts a promising future for Rigo, too, adding: “Tomas Rigo is undoubtedly Banik’s greatest jewel. He is the future driving force of the Slovak national team. I am really sure that he is a future player in one of the top five European competitions.”
This high praise comes after Rigo scored a world-class goal for Banik earlier this year, with a sublime free-kick to secure a 1-0 win for his team.
Rigo’s postage stamp finish had eurofotbal.cz drooling, with a report stating: “Tomas Rigo showed everyone that beautiful goals are also scored in the Czech Republic, like the one scored by Declan Rice from Arsenal in the Champions League.”
It was all intentional, too, with Rigo telling denník.cz portal: “I looked at the goals in the morning and thought it would be nice to score them the same way.
“When we were celebrating, the guys were already telling me that. I’m glad it turned out this way.”
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£3.5m investment would be a great deal for Ipswich Town
Back in January, Ipswich were linked with Rigo, as were a number of Serie A sides. No move materialised at that time, but there were offers according to the player’s agent, Martin Stepanovsky, who also suggested an exit could well come to fruition soon.
“If the club receives a lucrative offer, we will sit down together and discuss it. Banik rejected an offer for Tomas worth €2m (£1.73m). I think his value is currently around €4m (£3.5m),” Stepanovsky said.
“We can definitely imagine a club from the English or Italian league that could typologically suit Tomas. Clubs have been monitoring him since the summer, when the first such speculations appeared,” he added.
While Ipswich may have dropped down to the Championship now, they are one of the top teams in the division and would offer the perfect pathway for a young player looking to make his name in England. A stepping stone, perhaps; unless Ipswich can get promoted and give Rigo Premier League football themselves.
Rigo has spoken previously about how he enjoys playing fast, expansive, attacking football. He’s a player that is able to dictate the flow of the game and form the bridge between defence and attack, which will suit McKenna’s positive style of play down to the ground.
On Rigo’s attributes, Kvasnica said: “You can’t say about him that he’s a typical eight, six, ten. He connects everything beautifully.”
To get a player of that quality and with such high potential, for just £3.5m, would be an absolute no-brainer for McKenna, or indeed any team in the Championship.
Rigo could be the creative cog Ipswich need this season to secure promotion, and there’s no doubt he would be able to deliver a healthy profit for the Tractor Boys in the future, too.