BLUES boss Jim Magilton has been assured his job is safe even if he doesn't get them promoted this season.An increasing number of Ipswich Town supporters have questioned whether new owner Marcus Evans will stick with Magilton if they fail to go up after giving him a £12m kitty to spend in January.

Derek Davis

BLUES boss Jim Magilton has been assured his job is safe even if he doesn't get them promoted this season.

An increasing number of Ipswich Town supporters have questioned whether new owner Marcus Evans will stick with Magilton if they fail to go up after giving him a £12m kitty to spend in January.

But Town's chief executive Derek Bowden insisted that Magilton would still be the manager next season, even if they did not make the top six this year.

Bowden said: “Jim is under no pressure to succeed this year. When the investment was concluded in December we were not in a play-off place and we were really looking towards next season. As it happens, performances on the pitch meant we were in a position to be challenging so it made sense to invest.

“There is no time-bomb hovering over Jim. It would be crazy to get rid of him in the summer.

“He has done remarkably well with no money until January and we are still challenging.”

Bowden revealed Evans is patient enough to wait for Town to succeed and had planned for the longer term with some of his initial £12m investment for the squad still left to spend and the possibility of more to come in the summer if needed.

Bowden said: “The plan has always been over two years. The pressure, if you can call it that, is that we are seventh so it was worth putting extra into strengthening the squad, just as Charlton, Bristol and Stoke have done.

“When you get to the point where you are this close and have the wherewithal to invest more then logic says you should.

“We were not going to blow it all in January and we have committed about a third of it so there is still money to be invested in loan players this season or new signings in the summer.”

Town slipped out of the top sixth after being held to a draw by Sheffield United while Plymouth beat Colchester and as they are without a game on the weekend could slip to tenth place if results in the Championship go against them.