Carlos Edwards has confirmed his desire to remain at Portman Road beyond next summer when his present contract expires.
Edwards is one of a number of players whose deals are up at the end of the current campaign and he has made it clear he sees his future with Town.
The experienced right-back or winger said: “I would love to stay here. My family are settled, I am settled, there is a good bunch of lads here and this is a good club that should be – and I think will be – going places.
“I would hope that sooner rather than later the manager will give me the nod to go into his office for a chat, but for the time being I am happy to let my football do my talking for me.
“I won’t go and knock on his door, like a headless chicken, demanding a contract. They did offer me something at the end of last season and I told them I would hope to negotiate in six months’ time.
“I could have said yes and taken the bird in hand but I prefer to show them that I’m worth something good and want to stay here.”
The former Sunderland star has been a regular choice this season, although he was surprisingly dropped to the bench for the 3-2 home defeat by Doncaster a fortnight ago and his place in the starting line-up taken by Manchester City loanee Reece Wabara.
Edwards, who was restored at Nottingham Forest a week ago as Town suffered a fourth successive Championship defeat, added: “It is always good to have competition for places within the squad and obviously the manager brought Reece in for a reason – maybe it was to give me a bit of a rocket up my rear.
“I’m going to keep doing my thing and play well enough, hopefully, to give the manager a headache and make it difficult for him not to play me week in, week out. I don’t think I’ve done anything thus far to jeopardise my position.
“But I’m not going to get too swell-headed. I will be professional and try to continue playing good football and do the job the manager has asked me to do.
“He could have dropped me without saying a word but he called me into his office on the Friday and told me he was going to make a few changes and the reasons why.
“At the time I found it strange. I was a bit shocked and disappointed – and the fact that we lost the game made it even more hurtful – but I’m professional enough not to dispute his decision. Maybe I didn’t agree with it but I respected it and I have to accept it. There are a lot of disappointments in football but you carry on playing and life goes on.
“I’m not going to disrespect any player who takes my place. The manager may see something in them that he doesn’t see in me. When you are left out it always motivates you to try harder and if it doesn’t you shouldn’t be playing unless you just want to be a bit-part player.”
While Edwards’s future at Portman Road is uncertain, he and wife Denille are overjoyed to finally have their twins, born prematurely last month and weighing just two pounds each, at home with them.
It was an anxious time for the couple as the infants were in intensive care at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. He said: “We had to leave everything in the doctors’ hands and it has paid dividends. They have done their job and now the children are home and safe with their mum and me.”