“Kieran McKenna Breaks Silence on Ipswich Town’s Struggles After Late Drama at St Andrew’s”

“Kieran McKenna Breaks Silence on Ipswich Town’s Struggles After Late Drama at St Andrew’s”

Kieran McKenna Makes Candid Admission About Ipswich Town’s Promotion Hopes After Draw at Birmingham

Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna has offered a frank assessment of his side’s current state following their 1-1 draw with Birmingham City on the opening night of the 2025/26 Championship season.

The match at St Andrew’s brought together two sides with very different recent histories—Birmingham, fresh off a record-breaking League One title win, and Ipswich, returning to the second tier after relegation from the Premier League.

Both teams are targeting promotion this season, and each came away with a point after a dramatic, and at times controversial, encounter.

McKenna: “We’ve Got Work to Do”

Speaking after the match, McKenna admitted his side was far from the finished article, saying Ipswich still have plenty of work ahead if they are to be serious contenders for automatic promotion.

“It’s a quick turnaround between the Premier League and the Championship, and it’s been a short pre-season,” he told Sky Sports. “We’ve got work to do on the training ground with the group. There are new players to integrate and others still getting up to full speed.”

McKenna was also open about the need to strengthen the squad further: “There are some incomings and outgoings we need to resolve.

If we want to be considered one of the top teams in the division, the squad needs to be stronger. We’re a long way from where we want to be.”

Late Penalty Saves Point for Ipswich

The match itself was tightly contested. Birmingham took the lead in the second half after Jay Stansfield tapped in a rebound from Kyogo Furuhashi’s chip, which struck the post.

Ipswich were handed a lifeline in the dying moments of stoppage time when they were awarded a controversial penalty. George Hirst converted from the spot to salvage a draw, though Ipswich were arguably fortunate to escape with a point.

Transfer Talk: Akpom Deal Still Unconfirmed

The game came on the heels of a competitive transfer tussle between the two clubs over Ajax striker Chuba Akpom. While Ipswich appear to have won the race for his signature, McKenna remained tight-lipped.

“I don’t know, hopefully,” McKenna said when asked about Akpom. “But there’s no announcement or confirmation yet.”

With Hirst struggling to make an impact—registering just 22 touches, the fewest of any outfield player to play the full 90 minutes, and losing 10 duels—McKenna will be eager to bolster his attacking options.

Akpom, who netted 29 goals for Middlesbrough during his last Championship season, could provide the clinical edge Ipswich lacked in their season opener.