Ipswich Town Eye Julio Enciso Return

Ipswich Town are weighing up a move to bring Julio Enciso back to Portman Road, with Sky Sports reporting strong interest in the RC Strasbourg Alsace forward.

The 22-year-old Paraguayan knows the club, the stadium, and the expectation. He spent the second half of the 2024–25 season on loan with the Tractor Boys from Brighton & Hove Albion, making 13 appearances and chipping in with two goals and three assists. It was a short stay, but long enough to leave a mark.

Now there is a new figure in the dugout, and a familiar one in Enciso’s corner.

O’Neil’s project, Enciso’s moment

Gary O’Neil, recently appointed Ipswich manager, has already worked closely with Enciso at Strasbourg. That spell in Alsace has clearly shaped his thinking. He knows what the forward can offer, not in theory, but in the grind of a long season.

Enciso’s numbers in France back that up. Since arriving last summer, he has delivered a campaign that turned heads across Europe: 42 appearances in all competitions, 12 goals, nine assists. Twenty-one direct goal contributions for a player still only 22, adapting to a new league, a new country, a new rhythm.

This is not a speculative punt on potential. It is a manager targeting a player he trusts.

From Caaguazú to the World Cup spotlight

Enciso’s rise has not been confined to club football. The Caaguazú-born forward played a central role in Paraguay’s impressive run to the World Cup round of 16, helping dump Germany out of the tournament. That kind of night changes how a player is viewed. It also changes how he views himself.

Those performances on the biggest stage have only strengthened his market value and his bargaining power. Any club trying to sign him now is not just buying promise; they are buying a player who has already delivered when the pressure is at its fiercest.

The price of ambition

There is, of course, a catch. Enciso is under contract with Strasbourg until 2030, a long-term deal that gives the French club firm control over his future. The specialist website Transfermarkt currently values him at €25m, a figure that sets the tone for any negotiation.

For Ipswich, it would be a statement outlay, the kind of move that signals intent rather than survival. For Strasbourg, it would mean cashing in on one of their most decisive players after a single full season.

The player sits between those competing ambitions, with Portman Road, once again, on the horizon.