Don Goodman believes Leif Davis could have his head turned by Newcastle United and West Ham in the summer transfer window. The 24-year-old defender has been heavily linked with moves to several established Premier League clubs recently as he continues to impress for Ipswich in the Championship.
Davis, who sees his contract at Portman Road expire in 2025, has featured 33 times for Kieran McKenna’s side this season, providing 17 assists from left-back. The former Leeds and Bournemouth ace has played a crucial role in Ipswich’s bid for promotion to the top flight so far, courting the interest of some big clubs in the meantime.
Thanks to Davis’ efforts, the Blues are currently second in the Championship and just three points behind Leicester City. According to talkSPORT, Newcastle and West Ham are both keeping tabs on the Englishman.
The Magpies are hardly short on options at left-back with Dan Burn, Lewis Hall, Matt Target and Paul Dummett capable of playing the role. Not to mention Tino Livramento and Kieran Trippier too, who have also played there briefly in the past, so any move could indicate a summer clear-out is on the cards.
Nevertheless, speaking to King Casino Bonus and quoted by Football League World, Goodman believes it’ll be incredibly hard for Ipswich to keep Davis with Newcastle snooping about. The Sky Sports pundit said: “Well, I think it would [turn Davis’ head], it has to be [distracting] with respect to Ipswich.
“They’re a big club in the Championship, Ipswich Town, but right now, if they got promoted into the Premier League, they wouldn’t be one of the big clubs in the Premier League.
“As a player, you aspire to play at the highest level you can and obviously that’s the Premier League, it doesn’t really get much bigger, certainly for British players.
“If big clubs come in for him, Ipswich are going to find it hard to keep him. He’s had a brilliant last couple of seasons. Last season in League One, three goals, 14 assists, and then the question was – can you take that fall and look into the Championship to that higher level?
“And the answer is absolutely yes. This season now one goal, 14 assists already, so he’s matched at the higher level, the same amount of assists, and when you’ve got that kind of delivery that he’s got it’s a weapon, he’s an assist machine.”
