Ipswich Town Pursues Julio Enciso Reunion
Ipswich Town are exploring a move to bring Julio Enciso back to Portman Road, with new manager Gary O’Neil pushing to reunite with the Paraguay international, according to Sky Sports.
O’Neil wants a familiar spark
Enciso, 22, knows Ipswich already. He spent the second half of the 2024–25 season there on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, making 13 appearances and contributing two goals and three assists. It was a short stay, but enough to leave the sense that there was more to come.
Now O’Neil, only recently installed in the Ipswich dugout, is trying to tap into that unfinished business. The pair worked together at RC Strasbourg Alsace last season, where Enciso’s game took on a new edge and consistency. O’Neil saw that development up close in Alsace; he clearly believes Portman Road is the next stage.
Strasbourg breakout and World Cup shine
Enciso’s year in France has been anything but quiet. Since joining Strasbourg last summer, he has become one of their key attacking outlets, racking up 42 appearances in all competitions and directly contributing to 21 goals — 12 scored himself, nine laid on for others. Those numbers, for a player still only 22, explain why his name keeps surfacing in recruitment meetings.
His form carried onto the biggest stage. Enciso was part of Paraguay’s World Cup squad and played a central role in their run to the round of 16, a campaign that included the shock elimination of Germany. That tournament performance hardened the view that he is no longer just a promising talent, but a player ready to shape games at the highest level.
A costly reunion?
There is a significant obstacle. Enciso is tied to Strasbourg on a long-term contract running until 2030, and his market value has climbed. The specialist website Transfermarkt currently rates him at €25 million, a figure that underlines both his progress and the scale of investment required to prise him away from RCSA.
Ipswich know exactly what they would be getting: a versatile, inventive forward who already understands the club and the league, and a manager who trusts him. The question now is whether they are prepared to pay the price to turn that familiarity into a cornerstone of O’Neil’s new era.
