OWEN Garvan might be on his way to Cardiff City, as a sweetener in a possible Ipswich Town move for Michael Chopra.

Town boss Roy Keane is prepared to let Garvan leave Portman Road, after the 22-year-old Dubliner suffered a below-par season. He struggled to hold down a regular place in Keane’s starting line-up, despite continuing to play on the international stage for Republic of Ireland Under-21s.

Cardiff look set to have to sell several of their star players, due to financial problems, and they are already resigned to losing key midfielder Joe Ledley, whose contract has expired.

Bluebirds boss Dave Jones will therefore need to bolster his midfield, and the talented Garvan could fit the bill.

He was often frozen out of the Town side last term, playing second fiddle to David Norris and Grant Leadbitter in the middle of the park, with Keane also reluctant to employ him on the left flank.

Former trainee Garvan, who has rattled up 163 league games for Town since his arrival in November, 2004, ironically made his senior debut against Cardiff at the start of the 2005-06 campaign.

Regardless of the Garvan situation, Town will still have to pay a big fee, and also accommodate Chopra’s big wages, if they are to attract the 26-year-old hit-man to Portman Road. The Garvan situation would only be a side-show in this deal.

That’s why, for the moment at least, the odds are stacked against Chopra donning a Town shirt next season.

Any fee involving Chopra would involve a bare minimum of �3m, which is the figure Town are reported to have made, but would probably rise if a price war was to develop involving other clubs.

And Keane, although a big fan of Chopra, has warned that player wages are a major factor in any summer deal. The Bluebirds striker is believed to earn up to �20,000 a week, which is beyond Town’s means.

Chopra, a potent force at Championship level, bagged 21 goals last term, and so there would be no shortage of interested parties if he was to leave the Cardiff City Stadium.

He is still under contract, and would be very unlikely to leave the Bluebirds for another Championship club, especially if it meant a cut in wages.

The biggest attraction that Town can off is their manager himself. It was Keane who first recruited Chopra from Cardiff three years ago, for a �5m fee when the Irishman was the boss at Sunderland, and the two have a very good relationship.