Leif Davis has been one of the best defenders in the Championship this season.
Despite having previously played for teams battling to break out of the division and into the Premier League, such as Leeds United and AFC Bournemouth, the 24-year-old’s season with Ipswich Town has been nothing short of miraculous.
Prior to a ball being kicked, many second-tier fans were made aware of Kieran McKenna’s team and their capabilities following promotion from League One, in which Davis played an important role, with 12 assists and 14 major opportunities.
However, both have taken the second tier by storm, with Ipswich reclaiming second spot for the first time in six games, winning their fifth consecutive game – a 2-0 triumph at Plymouth on Saturday afternoon.
Leif Davis’ 2023/24 season to date
Based on Sofascore average ratings, Davis has been Town’s second-best performer among players who have appeared in more than five games, albeit this is due in part to Kieffer Moore’s immediate impact following his return to Portman Road.
The full-back has started all 32 Championship outings and is on track to improve his creative numbers from last season, with a quarter of the season remaining.
In fact, to demonstrate that he has been Town’s ‘Mr Consistent’ since joining for around £1.2 million from Elland Road in July 2022, Davis hasn’t dropped below a 7.0 average monthly rating since the season’s first game, when he recorded the first of his 12 assists against Sunderland in a 2-1 win.
Despite scoring two own goals in crucial away games against fellow promotion contenders, Davis’ defensive statistics demonstrate he has the ability and dynamism to be such an important cog in McKenna’s well-oiled machine, and they’ll hope he can make the step-up to the Premier League with them in the final two months of the regular season, or via the play-offs at the very least.
Leif Davis claim made as trio of Premier League clubs circle
According to TalkSport, Davis has recently been linked to his boyhood club, Newcastle United.
According to the aforementioned source, West Ham United are considering moving the full-back to the London Stadium, where he might replace former Ipswich left-back Aaron Cresswell. This comes after the Hammers were rumored to be considering a trade during the recent January window, but nothing materialised.
TWTD also claims that Nottingham Forest are big fans of the 24-year-old, in what might be an intriguing transfer story in the coming months.
Here at FLW, we asked our Ipswich fan pundit, Henry, about the probable issue and his own opinion of the Ipswich star.
“In the summer, what do I think his valuation would be? I really do think it’ll be around the £15m-£25m mark,” he claimed.
“It seems a bit extortionate and a lot in comparison to when he signed for £1.2m two years ago from Leeds. But I think, for one, he’s English – so you get ‘English Tax’ on him, good left-backs are hard to find, as well as his ability on and off the ball.
“His athleticism is fantastic, the way he can deliver a cross is great. It’s not the same types either, it’s towards the back post, the whip around the front, the pull-back to the penalty spot, as well as being on set-piece duty,” Henry continued.
“He’s got a lot of great skills in his armoury, and I think a couple of add-ons which will move it to £25m, is what Ipswich should be looking at. We’re not in desperate need to sell him but I imagine that figure would work.”
Ipswich fan pundit understands potential Leif Davis, Newcastle United predicament
As previously said, interest from his boyhood club might be a huge turn-on for Davis, who declared his affection for the Magpies in an interview with The Sun in August.
“I’ve always been a huge fan and have had a season ticket at St James’ Park for years,” the Newcastle-born defender explained.
Unsurprisingly, our fan pundit would recognize the personal relevance of a sufficient bid from the Magpies to Ipswich in the near future.
“If it is Newcastle, I can 100% understand why he’d want to leave with it being his boyhood team, it would be the perfect journey for him,” Henry added.
“He also fits the mould of what Eddie Howe is trying to do with them. He’s definitely better than Dan Burn, although I appreciate he’s not as tall, and he’s better than Matt Targett,” he claimed.
“I think he’d be a real weapon down the left side for Newcastle. But, they’d have to cough up the fee which Ipswich would demand, which they shouldn’t settle for anything less than £10m.
He ended: “It really should be closer to the £15-£20m mark.”
Ipswich Town hold the bargaining power
Despite the Premier League interest, Ipswich have enormous bargaining power, and this could be their best chance to earn a large profit on Davis, whose current deal in Suffolk expires in the summer of 2025.
If Town fail to earn promotion to the top level and the concrete interest continues, Davis appears to be destined for the Premier League.
However, in the immediate term, his focus must be on securing second place after overtaking his former employers, Leeds, in the race for automatic promotion.
Ipswich face Bristol City at home on Tuesday night, and they may finish the night joint-top with Leicester if the Foxes lose their fourth game in a row away to Sunderland.
