Jack Lankester has signed for fellow League One side Cambridge United for an undisclosed fee.
The 21-year-old midfielder has signed a two-year deal with the newly-promoted third-tier club having been told by Blues boss Paul Cook, along with several others, that he could move on this summer.
Bury St Edmunds boy Lankester joined Town at the age of six. He made his first team debut at the age of 18 in October 2018, coming on as a substitute in a 2–0 Championship home defeat to QPR, and went on to score in a 3-2 home defeat to Millwall in January 2019.
Subsequent back injuries slowed his progress though and he leaves having made just 13 starts and 17 substitute appearances.
His Ipswich contract had been due to expire next summer, though the Blues did have the option to extend that by a further year.
Including loanees, Lankester is the 19th senior player to depart Portman Road since the end of last season.
“I am very happy to be here,” Lankester told the Cambridge United website.
“As soon as it came up I was very excited to get it going. I am from Bury St Edmunds and know the area really well so it was definitely my first choice. A fresh start is something I need and I don’t think there is a better place than here to do it.”
U's boss Mark Bonner added: “Jack joins us at a stage in his career where contributing more often to the first team is key for him. His ability level saw him play 11 times in the Championship as an 18-year-old and although injuries have curtailed his development a little along the way, having returned to full fitness, he made a good impact in League One last season.
"His challenge now is to work for a place in the team and to adjust to a new environment quickly.
“He is well balanced, has an excellent left foot and superb vision to open teams up with incisive passes. This is a brilliant opportunity for him and I am excited to be working together with him.
"We aim to give him the confidence and opportunity he needs to show how good he is as we believe we have a player with real potential on our hands.”
Ipswich start pre-season training tomorrow, with Cook having named just 11 players in his first team squad.
IPSWICH TOWN TRANSFER WINDOW SO FAR
IN (2): Wes Burns (Fleetwood, undisc), Lee Evans (Wigan, free).
OUT (13): Andre Dozzell (QPR, £1m), Luke Chambers (Colchester, free), Gwion Edwards (Wigan, free), Cole Skuse (Colchester, free), James Wilson (Plymouth, free), David Cornell (contract terminated), Freddie Sears (Colchester, free), Alan Judge (Colchester, free), Oli Hawkins (Mansfield, undisc), Jack Lankester (Cambridge Utd, undisc), Stephen Ward, Emyr Huws, Tristan Nydam (all released).
LOANS EXPIRED (6): Mark McGuinness, Luke Matheson, Josh Harrop, Keanan Bennetts, Luke Thomas, Troy Parrott.
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