How Did We Get Here?
Former Ipswich Town man Sam Morsy only left English football in July, but he could be making his return very soon. The Egyptian signed for Ipswich in 2021, and left four seasons later, having made 165 appearances for the club and captaining them to back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League.
He would then head to Kuwait signing for Kuwait SC, but he has already departed from the Middle East, having only played three times. This leaves Morsy in a difficult position.
As he was not a free agent when the transfer window closed, he is unable to sign for a new club until the January transfer window opens. When he does make his return, could it be with a Championship side?
His Options
Ipswich Town
Probably the most obvious destination for Morsy, Ipswich Town could well take their former captain back like nothing ever happened. Sheffield United found themselves in a similar position with Chris Wilder who they controversially sacked at the end of last season, replacing him with Ruben Selles.
Selles was given six games, lost them all and has since been replaced by Wilder who won his second game in charge. Meanwhile Ipswich have made a decent start to the season, but not a great one by any means.
They currently sit twelfth in the league, but they do a have a game in hand which if they won could send them as high as fourth. This game in hand is of course their game against Blackburn Rovers which was controversially called off ten minutes from the end due to a waterlogged pitch with Rovers one nil up against ten men.
Ipswich Town’s midfield is lacking in depth somewhat with Azor Matusiwa, Jens-Lys Cajuste and Jack Taylor the main competition for Morsy’s position. On the other hand, perhaps Morsy will see his Ipswich career as a closed chapter and will look to sign elsewhere.
Sheffield United
Speaking of the Blades, they could do with some midfield reinforcements. Neither Tom Davies nor Ollie Arblaster have made an appearance this season, with the latter having suffered an ACL injury in November last year.
In terms of players who have played so far this season, Alex Matos and Djibril Soumare have been in and out of the starting XI, whilst Sydie Peck’s performances haven’t been as impressive as they were last year. In my opinion, not replacing Vinicius Souza whilst the transfer window was open was a big mistake.
bbc.com/sport/football/articles/c3w49p617g1o
Could Morsy be that replacement? As mentioned, Sheffield United have only won one game this season and are bottom of the league.
QPR
Sam Morsy would be a real statement signing for QPR. The R’s made a poor start to the season, only taking one point from their first three league games, the third of which being a 7-1 humiliation away against Coventry City.
You’d think that after such a bad result their confidence would be obliterated and they would continue their losing ways, but in fact the complete opposite has happened. They would go on to win their next three games in a row and draw their fourth.
Similar to Sheffield United, I think QPR’s midfield lacks depth. Sam Field played ninety minutes in the first three league games of the season but has only played six minutes in the four games since the Coventry defeat.
Jonathan Varane and Nicolas Madsen have been the midfield partnership since then and Isaac Hayden has been used sparingly since his return to the club. If Rangers are serious about making a bid for the playoffs this season, picking Morsy up in January could be a smart move.
Southampton
Another side who have been performing well below their preseason expectations, Southampton have only taken seven points from seven games, leaving them nineteenth in the table. This is surprising considering the fact that they were playing in the Premier League last season and thus have one of the strongest squads in the division.
Whilst they sold several of their best players, they did reinvest a lot of the money that they received from these sales, bringing in the likes of Tom Fellows and Finn Azaz. Furthermore, they appointed one of the games most exciting managers in Will Still.
All over the pitch, Southampton haven’t been good enough this season. In terms of their midfield options, Shea Charles and Flynn Downes are both solid Championship midfielders and Caspar Jander is another option following his arrival from FC Nurnberg.
Charles is 21, Downes is 26 and Jander is 22, so Morsy would add some much-needed experience to the middle of the park. Morsy knows how to get it done in the second tier and could definitely help the Saints turn their season around if they haven’t done so by the time January rolls around.
