IPSWICH Town will have to up the contract terms offered to Sunderland winger Carlos Edwards by the end of today or manager Roy Keane will be left frustrated in the transfer market yet again.

Stuart Watson

IPSWICH Town will have to up the contract terms offered to Sunderland winger Carlos Edwards by the end of today or manager Roy Keane will be left frustrated in the transfer market yet again.

The Trinidad & Tobago international travelled down to Portman Road yesterday morning to hold talks with the club after Sunderland boss Steve Bruce confirmed he had accepted a double bid from Keane for Edwards and Grant Leadbitter.

But 30-year-old Edwards was back in Sunderland yesterday evening having been left unimpressed with Town's initial offer and it is understood that he has given the club until this evening to increase their terms - or the move is off.

If the deal were to collapse it would prove to be another frustrating outcome for Keane in his bid to be reunited with some of the players that helped him get Sunderland promoted to the Premier League in 2006/7.

Keane had bids accepted by the Black Cats for Dean Whitehead and Daryl Murphy last month but revealed that a mixture of financial reasons and an unwillingness to drop down a level had left him unable to complete the deals.

The Irish manager is desperate to strengthen his squad before the transfer window closes at 5pm next Tuesday, while Bruce wants to lighten his squad's wage bill after a summer spending spree at the Stadium of Light.

Bruce - who has signed Darren Bent, Lee Cattermole, Lorik Cana, Fraizer Campbell and Paulo da Silva since taking over at the Stadium of Light - confirmed: “We have given both players (Leadbitter and Edwards) permission to go and speak with Roy. We'll see what develops after that.”

Meanwhile, it is believed that Keane could still look to revive a deal for Murphy, but Bruce has confirmed that he will knock back any approaches for defender Nyron Nosworthy, who has also been linked with Ipswich.

Nosworthy's agent Uben Gray also ruled out the move, saying: “No disrespect to Ipswich, or any Championship side, but at this point in his career, that is not a move Nyron will look for.”

The potential arrival of up to three new players at Portman Road would further cast into doubt the future of a number of the current squad with an angry Keane having stated that 'one or two players will not play for me again' following last Saturday's defeat at West Bromwich Albion.

Doncaster Rovers boss Sean O'Driscoll has admitted that he is interested in striker Jon Stead, who was left out of Ipswich's squad on Tuesday night, but admitted that a deal is unlikely.

He said: “He's a very good player.

“We'll always follow things up, but at the back of your head, you'll always be thinking 'can we afford it?'

“And the answer is probably not.”

Crystal Palace have also been linked with a loan deal for the 26-year-old.