Ipswich LIVE: I saw a winning culture’ – McKenna Town defender explains Portman Road switch attraction” after £12m was triggered in August for the standing Rock” Town already gearing up for west ham crunch….
Town defender Dara O’Shea says the culture and togetherness in the squad played a huge part in his decision to move to Portman Road during the summer.
O’Shea arrived towards the end of August for an initial £12m from Burnley and was among 12 new arrivals during the summer transfer window before establishing himself at the heart of the Blues defence.
Both of O’Shea’s previous two Premier League seasons with West Bromwich Albion and the Clarets ended in relegation, but says he has seen enough to suggest his time at Town can be different.
“First of all, I saw a winning culture, a winning environment and a real together group which is the main thing,” he said. “I found that over my experience in football, having that core group and togetherness goes a long way.
“The quality in the group is there and that’s for everyone to see, but there’s more to that in football and there’s more to successful teams than just quality. I really saw that coming off the back of two amazing seasons, it was something that I couldn’t not see.
“It was quite a long process. There was lots of stuff that was floating about in the summer and it was a decision I had to make as to where I wanted to come.
“I felt like Ipswich was the right place for me. There’s a lot of good things happening at this club and I knew it was a big club, but I probably didn’t realise how big a club it was until I came here and saw the amazing atmosphere at the stadium and how big the Foundation is to the club.
“It’s a decision I’m really proud to have made now, I feel like it’s the right one for me and my career and I’m excited to be working under a great manager and a good bunch of lads.”
The defender confirmed there was also interest in his services from fellow Premier League sides Brentford and Wolverhampton Wanderers which came close to materialising, but is pleased to have made the decision to make the move to Suffolk.
He said: “It was quite close. Football works quite quickly and things change, it was really close to going a different direction. It didn’t and I’ve made the right decision by coming to Ipswich.
There were options there and there was stuff on the table. Football is quite a tricky world and how things become quite fine details and stuff like that.
“Rene [Gilmartin, goalkeeping coach] was the first one on the phone, to be fair. He was telling me to jump in the taxi with Aro as he came down here, but things weren’t done as much as you’d like then.
“Knowing the lads here, I’ve known a lot of lads so they were texting me and asking me to come too so that was quite nice.”
