Former Rangers star earns shock Premier League chance after transfer call leaves him in two-club predicament
The former Rangers defender has been subject to a transfer call.
A former Rangers defender has been handed a shock Premier League chance - with just six months remaining on his contract.
George Edmundson was at Ibrox between 2019-2021 and became affectionally known as 'The Fridge' with his no-nonsense attitude to defending. He may not have been a first team regular but still came up with big performances that convinced Ipswich Town to take the plunge on him.
He has featured 75 times for the Portman Road side now in the Premier League, but Edmundson hasn't joined them for almost all of that journey, spending the season on loan at Middlesbrough. With a year on his deal, a season-long loan spell seemed to signal the end of his time with the Tractor Boys, but he has been a regular for the Riverside outfit.
He is also unable to play for another club having featured for both sides this term. Now the former Rangers defender has been brought back to Ipswich as Kieran McKenna's side fight relegation from the English top flight, meaning he’s either saddling up for a battle at the bottom or heading back to his loan club at some stage. For now, he is earning a Premier League opportunity.
An Ipswich statement reads: “The Club can confirm George Edmundson has been recalled from his loan spell at Middlesbrough. The central defender made 21 appearances after joining the Championship side in August, scoring once, but will now return to Portman Road. “
Michael Carrick, Middlesbrough manager, said to Teeside Live: “We knew it was a possibility. We didn't know when it might come. The ball was in their court in terms of that situation. What happens next, we'll have to wait and see.
“It's not long happened so we'll explore what happens next. It's something we'll look at for sure. George has done well but it needs to be right for all parties so we'll see how that goes. We were aware of it and we knew it was a possibility. It’s the case with a lot of loans that there is a cut off point before the deadline.
“We knew it was a possibility before tonight and we planned for the game with that in mind, so it didn’t affect preparation for the game too much. We knew it was a possibility so he wasn’t going to start tonight’s game anyway, just in case. It is what it is. Sometimes you’re fully in control, sometimes you’re not and you’ve got to adapt.
“He enjoyed it. I think it's wrong of me to speak for George, but he's loved it here, he's played a lot of football and he's been an important part of what we've done. It's been an important experience for him.
“I have spoken to him since it happened. Again, I can’t speak for him in terms of how he feels about the decision, but he had a real positive experience here and we’ll just have to see what happens next.”