IPSWICH TOWN: Roy Keane is well aware that time is ticking away if he wants to achieve enough to be offered a new Blues contract.

His current one runs out on June 30 next year, and the Town manager says that this brings its own pressure.

Three straight npower Championship defeats have put a question mark back over the head of Keane after he appeared to be sailing with the wind behind following a very impressive start to the season.

Although Town beat Northampton on Tuesday to reach the quarter final of the Carling Cup and ensure Keane’s immediate future he admits that pressure is on to get Ipswich promoted to the Premier League by next summer.

He said: “If I had signed a five-year contract it would be much different.

“But I completed a two-year one, and as I said at the time I’m comfortable with that.

“And if you are not winning football matches this can only add pressure.

“I’m happy with the efforts my players are putting in and I’m happy with our support.

“And of course it is not all doom and gloom.

“We’re in the quarter-finals of a major cup competition and three points away from sixth place in the league.”

Keane admits that before the Cobblers victory it had been a bad week with defeats against Coventry City at home and Watford and Nottingham Forest away.

“But that’s life sometimes, and every Championship manager will tell you how competitive the division is.

“Scoring goals has been a problem since I’ve been here and when you are not finding the back of the net it puts extra pressure on the team, particularly the back four.”

Keane will be buoyed by a three-goal assault on Northampton and the fact that his team scored twice in the first half.

“We know we need to start matches better,” Keane added.

“But this is an individual thing and how players react when the whistle blows.

“There is no point a manager ranting and raving in his pre-match talk – I only do that at the interval or the end although my players will confirm that I’m bawling at them much.

“When I was playing I was completely relaxed at 2.55pm. But by 3pm I was ready to go, and I mean ready to go.”

Keane is seeking to strengthen his squad in the January transfer window – and he has two courses of action.

One is to convince club owner Marcus Evans to part with some more �millions. The other is to sell hot young property Connor Wickham to raise the necessary cash if Evans is not convinced his money will be spent wisely.