Town striker joins League One club on permanent deal

Charlton Athletic have announced the signing of Ipswich Town striker Gassan Ahadme on a four-year deal.

The 23-year-old joined the Blues for a reported fee of £300,000 back in 2022, scoring just once in eight appearances before returning to the Pirelli Stadium on loan five months later.

He spent last season at Cambridge United, bagging 11 goals in League One to finish as the U's top scorer despite missing a number of weeks through injury.

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Following Town's promotion to the Premier League, a permanent exit felt inevitable. The East Anglian Daily Times and Ipswich Star revealed that Charlton were interested at the end of last month, and that move has since materialised.

The fee is believed to be in the region of £1 million, with add-ons potentially taking it above that figure.

The Addicks recently sold top-scorer Alfie May to third-tier rivals Birmingham City, adding Matty Godden from Coventry City as his replacement. Ahadme comes in to bolster their forward line further as they look to challenge for promotion to the Championship.

Nathan Jones, who took over from Michael Appleton in February, guided them away from the relegation zone to secure a 16th-place finish last season.

Ahadme will be managed by Nathan Jones from next season (Image: PA)

Ipswich are now down to three senior out-and-out strikers - George Hirst, Ali Al-Hamadi and Freddie Ladapo. The latter two are expected to leave on loan and permanent deals respectively.

Speaking after the move was confirmed, Ahadme said: “Since the first time I spoke with Nathan, I was impressed with the things that he told me, and especially the energy that I felt from him and the things that he wants to do. It’s a really ambitious project and that’s why I’m excited to be here.”

Jones added: “I’m delighted we’ve signed Gassan, he was a real number one target for us. Like with the signing of Matty Godden, it has been a long process - we’ve been pursuing him all summer. We’re delighted to add him, he brings us quality, and a presence and profile of a number nine.

“His arrival continues the recruitment process that we want with a focus on being categorically stronger as a squad coming out of the transfer window.

“The two strikers we’ve signed have real pedigree and I’d like to thank the Board and the ownership for backing us on these signings. Our squad has significantly improved already this summer and we haven’t finished our recruitment.”