“McKenna trusts him” – Ipswich Town urged to sanction multi-year player deal

“McKenna trusts him” – Ipswich Town urged to sanction multi-year player deal

Ipswich Town are apparently preparing to offer custodian Vaclav Hladky a new three-year contract.

Journalist Alan Nixon has revealed on his Patreon that the Tractor Boys are considering making a multi-year offer to their number one before he leaves for free in the summer at the end of his current contract.

The 33-year-old has been Town’s staple between the posts this season, with Christian Walton, the number one from a season ago, filling in for the former Salford City keeper in the 23/24 campaign.

Henry, Football League World’s Ipswich fan commentator, has commented on the Czech shot-stopper’s probable new deal.

Ipswich fans’ thoughts on prospective new deal for Hladky

Henry told FLW: “He’s saved us in games, but he’s also cost us some points. I believe that he has saved us more than he has cost us this season.

“His ball handling talent has improved with time. There are also concerns regarding his ability to stop long-range shots and control the ball rather than catch it.

“The last goal against Hull City, and the goal against Coventry City, you might argue that he could have done better, but his save in the first half against Hull, and then the spectacular save against Coventry to deny their scorer from point-blank range was fantastic.

He has both the reflexes and the distribution. His aerial presence hasn’t been questioned much, which surprised me given that it was one of his shortcomings when he first came in.

“Walton is considerably better in the air, but his distribution is not up to par with Hladky.

“If we are promoted, I believe he would be an excellent backup, and we would want to sign another custodian.

“Having said that, I believe McKenna trusts him, so he may be the number one to begin with, and they can see where it goes from there.

I believe that is a challenging one. I believe that if we end up in the Championship for another season, we will surely continue with him. He’s certainly good enough for the championship.

“I think he’s only going to get better at knowing his position in the box with his centre backs, and he needs to gain confidence in his shot-stopping, being able to push the ball away and claim it.”

“Yes, he is good enough to start in the Premier League. I might think differently after a few games. But I believe a three-year contract works.”

Ipswich should look to Luton Town for inspiration on the custodian position.

There are really two instances in which the three teams that advanced last season changed their custodian from the one they promoted with.

Luton had Ethan Horvarth, who is now on loan at Cardiff City, for the 22/23 season,

then in the summer, they signed Thomas Kaminski from Blackburn Rovers.

Similarly, Burnley chose to buy James Trafford from Manchester City,

who had played a significant role in Bolton Wanderers’ promotion to the play-offs,

to replace Arijanet Muric, who has returned to the starting lineup.

The Hatters are a better example because their move appears to have worked,

even if it was unexpected as Kaminski wasn’t Blackburn’s starting keeper when they signed him.

Despite his team’s dismal defensive record, he has been a highly astute signing for them,

and Ipswich may aim to make a similar move this summer.

This season, the Czech glovesman hasn’t been particularly spectacular in his position. According to Sofascore,

he has conceded about three goals more than he should have, while also keeping the third most clean sheets.

Vaclav Hladky 23/24 league stats (as of 2nd May)
Goals prevented	-2.96 (35th)
Goals conceded per game	1.3 (11th)
Saves per game	2.5 (17th)
Clean sheets	14 (3rd)
Stats taken from Sofascore

If Hladky is kept as the first choice, there is plenty of evidence that it would not be a poor decision. But if Ipswich make it to the top level, keep an eye out for shot-stoppers in July.

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