No place like home – Jason Dozzell says his son Andre is staying with Ipswich Town
Andre Dozzell in action for England Under-17s - Credit: Action Images
Premier League scouts continue to circle, but rising Ipswich Town star Andre Dozzell is going nowhere.
That’s according to his father Jason, a man who has his hometown club very much in his heart.
Dozzell Senior memorably made his Town debut aged just 16 and 57 days in February 1984, becoming the top-flight’s youngest-ever goalscorer with his substitute goal against Coventry. That record still stands.
Little more than 32 years later, Dozzell Junior – who will sign a two-year professional deal when he turns 17 in May – was on the first-team bench for Town when he was an unused sub in the recent game against Nottingham Forest.
And with Copleston High School pupil Andre having pulled the strings for England’s Under-17 side in three games over the international break, a host of top-flight clubs – including Arsenal and Tottenham – have reportedly been keeping close tabs on his progress.
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“There’s no better place for him to be at this moment in time,” said Jason, who spent 10 seasons with Town, went on to make a £1.9m move to Tottenham and is now an academy coach back with his beloved Blues.
“Andre has been training with the first-team quite a lot and he was on the bench recently – I don’t think any of his England team-mates are getting that sort of experience with their clubs, so why would he move? The pathway is not so clear for boys at the big Premier League clubs.”
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Jason continued: “I didn’t think he would be involved with the first team this year, but he’s been on a weights programme and that seems to be paying dividends. Physically he has developed a lot in the last two months.
“His mum has done a very good job in keeping him grounded and he knows he has to work really hard and be really committed.
“It’s exciting times and it would be great if he could get a game for the first team before the end of the season.”
