Szmodics rejoins Derby on loan from Ipswich Town

Sam Szmodics has scored five goals in 39 appearances in all competitions for Ipswich [Getty Images]Derby County have re-signed forward Sam Szmodics on a season-long loan from Ipswich Town.

>The 30-year-old's latest move to Pride Park, however, comes with an obligation for the Rams to buy the Republic of Ireland international at the end of the 2026-27 campaign.

>BBC Radio Derby understands the obligation to buy is appearance-based and the fee will be in the region of £2.7m.

>Szmodics featured 13 times for Derby last season, scoring three goals, as they fell four points short of the Championship play-off places.

>He has previously flourished under Rams boss John Eustace, ending as the second tier's leading scorer with 27 goals in 2023-24 when the head coach was in charge of Blackburn Rovers.

>Those goals helped convince Ipswich to pay £9m to take him to Portman Road in the summer of 2024 when they were heading into their first Premier League season for more than two decades.

>He scored just four top-flight goals as the Tractor Boys were relegated after just one season, then he managed to find the net only once in 18 appearances for Ipswich last season before moving to Derby on loan.

>"After being here for a couple of months, I knew what the squad and the club were all about - if I had anywhere to come back to, it was always going to be here," Szmodics told the club website.

>"Hopefully, we will go one step further than we did last year and get promoted to the Premier League."

>Meanwhile, Derby midfielder Liam Thompson is on the verge of leaving the club for Mansfield Town.

>The 24-year-old first made his debut in 2021 following a six-year journey through the academy ranks and has one year left on his deal.

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