Ipswich Town new boy Alex Henshall admits it has been a steep learning curve playing under Mick McCarthy’s management.

The 20-year-old winger was courted by all of the Premier League’s top clubs when he broke into hometown club Swindon’s first team squad at the tender age of 15.

Four years training alongside global superstars at Manchester City improved his technical game no end, but the quick and skilful wideman admits preparing for Championship football under McCarthy – a man who places huge emphasis on organisation, discipline and ‘putting in a shift’ – has been something of a culture shock.

The Blues boss publicly slammed the youngster for giving away a soft penalty in the final minute of a 1-1 pre-season draw at Leyton Orient and also criticised him for giving the ball away in the build up to Crawley Town’s late extra-time winner in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday night.

“The gaffer has told me that I’ve got a lot of work to do on my game and I agree with him,” said Henshall.

“That Orient game is one I want to forget. I knew he’d come out in the press and slate me for giving that penalty away. I’ll certainly not do that again!

“He said to me this morning that I didn’t do too bad against Crawley and I told him it definitely wasn’t one of my best games. I can do a lot better than that.

“I like to stay out wide and get to the by-line, but I could hear the gaffer shouting at me on Tuesday night to just stay inside. I was a bit confused by that because I’ve never played like that before.

“When I spoke to him this morning I kind of understood where he was coming from and how he wants me to play. I’ll keep listening to him.”

He continued: “This is probably the hardest pre-season I’ve ever had. At Man City we go straight in to ball work and possession, but here it’s all about running and working hard. It’s a big difference, but it’s made me a lot fitter than I was. There were a lot of aspects of my game that I completely missed out on during my time Man City.

“I think the gaffer and TC (Terry Connor) can guide me into becoming a top Championship player, but it’s obviously also down to me to make the most of my opportunity.”