Axel Tuanzebe has left Ipswich Town to sign for Burnley, and while Ben Johnson and Harry Clarke could step in to replace him, the Blues may look to sign a new right-back this summer. Alex Jones looks at eight options...
Alfie Gilchrist
When it comes to players with Championship experience, there were a few that stood out. Jimmy Dunne was on my list until he signed a new deal at QPR, as was Japhet Tanganga, who I’ve written about before, but ultimately seems destined for a Premier League move if he leaves Millwall.
With that in mind Alfie Gilchrist is one of the standout candidates. Set to depart Chelsea permanently this summer, he can play right-back or centre-back, having done a bit of both on loan at Sheffield United last season.
At 21, there’s loads of room for him to grow and develop. He has a similar profile to Tuanzebe - although he isn’t as fast - but offers something different to the other options at the club and he’d likely end up sitting behind Ben Johnson in the pecking order. That being said, he’s a more natural Kieran McKenna-style right-back.
There will be other Championship interest, so this one wouldn’t be easy to do, but he’s the right profile and would probably be affordable with a year left on his deal. Although there have been no concrete links yet, plenty of Town fans are keen on him.
Kaine Kesler-Hayden
Another name that I’ve seen a lot of Ipswich supporters eyeing up is Kaine Kesler-Hayden.
The 22-year-old is different to Gilchrist. He wants to push up the pitch and bomb down the right, creating good chances from wide areas. That being said, he’s a solid defender too. He can do both sides.
Kesler-Hayden is now at a stage in his career where he needs to decide a pathway. He’s made just five appearances for boyhood club Aston Villa, having featured out on loan at Swindon Town, MK Dons, Huddersfield Town, Plymouth Argyle and Preston North End.
He’s played a good number of games for a player of his age, but he clearly needs to be at a club where minutes are easier to come by. He’s got an exciting future if he can find that, and although Ipswich may need to tweak their approach for him to be their Tuanzebe replacement, he fits what McKenna would want in a signing.
Perry Ng
On the other end of the spectrum, Perry Ng is coming into the prime years of his a defender’s career.
The 29-year-old worked his way through the ranks at Crewe Alexandra before joining Cardiff City in 2021. He’s now played five seasons in the Welsh capital, but the Bluebirds were relegated to League One last season.
With that in mind, Ng may be looking for the best pathway for him to play Premier League football before it’s too late. After all, he’s looking to tick off the international football box by representing Singapore, so this could be a big year for personal milestones. Cardiff are unlikely to get him to the top flight - could Town?
Occasionally used as a centre-back, he found his feet at Championship level while playing as a right-back. He’s consistent defensively and a threat from set pieces, having bagged six goals and four assists in 2023/24. He shouldn’t have a huge price tag on him, especially with his deal running out next summer.
Aaron Hickey
In football terms, Aaron Hickey has had to go through hell.
The Scottish international joined Bologna from Hearts in 2020 before moving on to Brentford in 2022. He started off well despite some ankle ligament issues, resulting in links to Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool. Then disaster struck in October 2023 as he picked up a serious knee injury.
10 months later, it was revealed that he suffered another setback, and he ended up missing almost the entire 2024/25 season, returning to training back in April. With Michael Kayode now ahead of him in the pecking order, he may need to find somewhere to play regular football next season in order to get back on track.
Brentford clearly admire McKenna and would surely trust him with a move like this. There are clear risks, but it would still be an ambitious move to bring him to Suffolk. He’s versatile, physical and exciting to watch. He’d be one of the better players in the Championship if he was to drop down.
Ki-Jana Hoever
Ki-Jana Hoever is surely set for a permanent move away from Wolves.
Signed from Liverpool back in 2020, the 23-year-old has featured 25 times for his current club, but he’s also spent time out on loan at PSV Eindhoven, Stoke City and Auxerre.
So a summer transfer feels natural, and Ipswich could be a suitable destination after playing 30 Ligue 1 games last season. He can play in a variety of positions on the right - centre-back, right-back or right wing-back. At 6’0, he has height on his side and has previously received a lot of praise from Jurgen Klopp.
With his contract expiring in less than a year, Wolves will probably be keen to sell now, even though they initially paid £9m for him - with Liverpool reportedly boasting a 25% sell-on clause. It’d certainly be a deal that could be done.
Ethan Galbraith
Ethan Galbraith started off as a midfielder Manchester United, playing under McKenna in their academy. He impressed on loan at Doncaster Rovers and Salford City, but despite signing a professional deal at Old Trafford, he departed for Leyton Orient in 2023.
At Brisbane Road, he’s spent quite a lot of time playing as a creative right-back. Last season, he notched six goals and six assists as the O’s narrowly missed out on promotion via the play-offs. His former manager for Northern Ireland, Ian Baraclough, likened his vision to that of FC Barcelona legends Xavi and Andres Iniesta.
Now, following a stellar campaign, numerous Championship and League One clubs have been linked, with Huddersfield Town most recently seeing a bid rejected.
McKenna likes reuniting with players he’s worked with in the past and Galbraith, while lacking top-level experience, is an exciting prospect. He certainly wouldn’t be a regular at Portman Road and he’d need to agree to continue his career as a right-back instead of a midfielder.
He'd be totally different to Tuanzebe and this would be a big step up for him, but I reckon he'd be up for it.
Alejandro Frances
Looking abroad, Girona’s Alejandro Frances stands out to me.
The 22-year-old came through Zaragoza’s academy before moving on in the summer of 2024, signing for Girona on a five-year deal. From the outside, it doesn’t really look like a move that’s worked out well for either party.
The Catalan club, who finished third in La Liga in 2023/24, dodged relegation by a solitary point last season. Frances made just 13 starts and five cameo appearances, spending a lot of time as an unused substitute.
He may consider his options this summer, and English football could be in his mind if he does. Most of his minutes have come at centre-back, but he’s more than comfortable at right-back, boasting the speed, strength and one-v-one defending required for the role.
This one probably wouldn’t be a cheap deal to do. Girona, owned by the City Football Group, may only have spent around £3m on him last summer, but would surely look to turn a healthy profit.
Ben Godfrey
Yep, alright, hear me out.
Ben Godfrey joined Ipswich on loan from Atalanta in January. It didn’t work out, he featured just three times in the Premier League and really failed to impress. The expectation is that he’ll go back to Atalanta and move elsewhere this summer.
There were extenuating circumstances. Firstly, he hadn’t played for the first half of the season because former boss Gian Piero Gasperini quickly decided that he wasn’t right for his squad after signing him. Then, lacking match fitness, he was thrown in for some really difficult games.
What if he had a whole pre-season to get back in shape, then had a campaign starting at right-back for a promotion-chasing Championship side? I think he could really kick on. He’s shown what he’s capable of at Norwich City and Everton.
New Atalanta boss Ivan Juric may want some time to assess Godfrey in pre-season, but his Italian adventure is likely coming to an end. He knows Ipswich, he knows the manager and the expectations. Why not? After all, he was signed to cover Tuanzebe during his injury spell. Could he now replace him?
