Yesterday evening George Hirst joined Ipswich Town on loan from Leicester City, this article will summarise what Ipswich Town fans can expect from their new signing.
Hirst played the first half of the season on loan at Championship side Blackburn Rovers but his time at Rovers was underwhelming to say the least, he only played 9 championship games with 7 of those appearances being cameos off the bench. The 23-year-old didn’t manage a single goal involvement in his few appearances.
👋 A new face in the dressing room!
George joins on loan from Leicester City for the remainder of the campaign. #itfc
— IPSWICH TOWN (@IpswichTown) January 8, 2023
Ipswich made Hirst a target in the summer after he had impressed on loan at fellow League One side Portsmouth where he managed 13 league goals. His parent club Leicester thought he would progress better with a move to a higher division and decided not to accept The Tractor Boys’ offer.
When a second chance to finally get their target arose Town snapped up the opportunity to get his signature. The deal is a loan only and there doesn’t appear to be an option to buy, which was included in his deal at Blackburn.
Hirst is a menace and causes defenders lots of issues, standing at six feet 2 inches he is powerful going forward and doesn’t struggle when battling defenders both in the air and on the deck. As mentioned above he is proven in League One after spending time in the division with Portsmouth. Hirst struggled in the championship with Rotherham United in 20/21 not registering a goal or assist in 31 appearances.
Writer’s view…
In my opinion, Hirst is a smart signing as he will bring some pedigree into Town’s forward line, he is also already proven at League One level. His confidence may have dropped after a poor first half of the season but being back in a division where he knows he can score could help him hit the ground running.
Ipswich were looking to bring in a striker or two to help propel them to a return to the Championship after a 4 season stint out of the division and I believe the addition of Hirst will help them to achieve that.
