Ipswich Town suffered a major setback to their hopes of finishing inside the Championship top two last time out versus Sheffield United.
The Tractor Boys would have entered into the contest at Bramall Lane as overwhelming favourites, with the Blades languishing near the bottom spaces of the division, while Kieran McKenna's men had collected four straights win in the gruelling league.
Kieran McKenna manager of Ipswich Town-1
Unfortunately, the game wouldn't play to the expected script for the visitors from Suffolk, as Chris Wilder's side ran out as convincing 3-1 victors.
To make matters worse, ahead of crunch matches to come in the race to finish in the automatic promotion positions, Jaden Philogene will be absent, owing to a knee injury.
Having put away goals for fun this season, this is a major loss, with Ipswich also priortising attacking additions in the striker role, before February's impending deadline.
Ipswich tracking Premier League star
McKenna will hope for some impactful January additions here and there that can elevate his side to surging up to the Premier League.
Joel Piroe could be just the boost up top the Tractor Boys need to break into the top two, with McKenna and Co. recently expressing an interest in signing the reigning Championship golden boot winner.
Joel-Piroe-Leeds
Alongside Piroe, Ipswich have also been noted to be interested in MLS goal machine Sam Surridge, with the Nashville SC star standing out as a notable name on the ever-extending shopping list of their striker targets.
A new name has also emerged as a target, as per a report from the East Anglian Daily Times, with the report revealing that Ipswich have been tracking the services of Newcastle United centre-forward William Osula for some time.
Newcastle striker William Osula-2
It remains to be seen who Ipswich can tempt to Suffolk, as they gun for automatic promotion glory, with Osula perhaps sticking out as a dream alternative target, to the ongoing chase for Surridge.
Why Osula would be a dream alternative to Surridge
While Surridge's relocation back to England would be an exciting prospect, considering the 27-year-old has a jaw-dropping 51 goals for Nashville from 87 clashes, he wouldn't arrive at Portman Road on the cheap.
Indeed, he once cost the MLS outfit £5m, and with such a revered reputation now in front of goal in America, he will surely cost a bomb for B.J. Callaghan's men to part ways with.
Moreover, there's no guarantee that Surridge would be able to come straight into the Ipswich starting XI and be as deadly, with the 6-foot-3 striker only up to an unconvincing 17 goals at Championship level, when playing for four different sides. Shockingly, too, his MLS numbers for 2025 saw him spurn a weighty 31 big chances.
Instead of gambling away their money on a striker who has struggled in the second tier before, and can routinely fluff his lines under pressure, the promotion chasers could well be better placed to try out Osula's loan services instead, with the energetic Dane often utilised as a chaotic livewire off the bench at Newcastle United.
This season alone, Osula has been at the heart of several memorable Magpies strikes in the Premier League, with this effort blasted home in August, helping Howe and Co. to a share of the points against Arne Slot's Liverpool.
Yet, it would be his drive and verve when coming on as a late substitute against Fulham, a couple of months on from this exhilarating 3-3 showdown, that would see journalist Jordan Cronin hail him as a "game-changer" for the Tyneside outfit, with his last-ditch burst of pace resulting in captain Bruno Guimaraes tapping home.
Osula's impressive short-term impact
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Eight goal contributions have fallen into the Aarhus-born striker's lap at St James' Park, subsequently, despite only 757 minutes of action coming his way since leaving Sheffield United behind, with McKenna surely keen to add such a tireless presence into his ranks, knowing he could make the difference in some huge promotion clashes to come.
He would also be far more cost-effective, coming in as a loanee trying to impress, than splashing the cash on Surridge, who has a disappointing one goal to shout about from his own Premier League experiences.
Newcastle striker William Osula-1
Ipswich also can't wait around forever to win Surridge, as Monday's deadline catches up with them, with Osula's short-term signature being won, instead, potentially going down as a fantastic alternative to the Slough-born attacker joining.
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