Ipswich Town expert on what ex-Everton man Luke Garbutt will bring to Blackpool after penning short-term deal at Bloomfield Road

While defensive reinforcements were a necessity, and probably still are, it was in the centre of defence and on the right side, not at left-back, where supporters were expecting the Seasiders to strengthen.

When you consider head coach Neil Critchley already has two very good full-backs on his hands in James Husband and Demetri Mitchell, while youngster Nathan Shaw is also capable of playing there, it’s fair to say it’s a position Blackpool were already well stocked in.

Nevertheless, you can never have too much quality in your squad and in Garbutt the Seasiders have got their hands on a highly sought-after player in the third tier.

The 27-year-old looked set to make the move to Sunderland earlier this summer, only for the introduction of the salary cap to scupper those plans.

Ipswich Town, meanwhile, were also interested in bringing the former England Under-21 international in on a permanent deal having had him on a season-long loan last term.

The set-piece specialist made 30 appearances for Paul Lambert’s side last season, contributing six goals and three assists.

His time in Suffolk started brightly, having been deployed in a left-winger’s role due to injuries elsewhere.

He subsequently scored on his league debut, before adding two more in the following three games.

However, despite scoring from the penalty spot in the 2-2 draw against Blackpool at Portman Road in November 2019, his form began to dip a little, with injuries hampering his progress.

Given Pool’s strength in depth at left-back, where will Garbutt fit into Critchley’s plans? And what qualities does he bring to the table? Will Husband move to centre-back to accommodate him?

The Gazette spoke to Andy Warren, Ipswich Town writer for the East Anglian Daily Times, to get the lowdown on Blackpool’s latest acquisition.

“When Garbutt was at his best last season, Ipswich were too,” he explained.

“His season started so promisingly, just as Ipswich’s did, but while he maintained high standards throughout, he and his team simply couldn’t maintain their blistering form at the beginning of an extremely promising campaign.

“His start to life in Suffolk was blistering and he epitomised early day optimism. He was confident, direct, always looked a threat and, while he and the team couldn’t keep it up for the entire season, Garbutt continued to perform well.

“He’s excellent on the ball, looks to use it positively whenever he gets it and is capable of putting dangerous balls into the box and shooting from range in equal measure.

“His set-pieces were of course a real plus and gave the Blues an additional threat, with a murmur of expectancy creeping throughout Portman Road whenever he stood over the ball from range. It was exciting.

“He really embraced his move to Ipswich, too. Plenty of players say the right thing when they join clubs on loan but Garbutt clearly understood the Ipswich fans’ expectations and looked to thrive on them. His upbringing at Everton clearly helped in that regard.”

Garbutt very much fits the mould of an attacking modern-day full-back, bombing forward and looking to deliver dangerous crosses into the box as often as possible. So much so, it’s thought his best position could even be on the wing.

But, with the Seasiders sticking stubbornly to Critchley’s 4-3-3 formation, where the traditional role of the winger isn’t really utilised, it’s difficult to see where Garbutt fits in other than left-back.

“Garbutt was a consistent performer for the vast majority of his loan spell but any criticism that did come his way related to his defensive ability, rather than for his attacking contribution,” Andy added.

“Despite starting the campaign as a left winger he played the vast majority as either a left-back or at wing-back. It will be interesting to see if Blackpool give him the opportunity to show off his attacking tendencies or whether he is still regarded as a defender.

“He could sometimes be caught out positionally at the back, perhaps due to a desire to get forward, and could have done more to stop crosses into the box on a number of occasions throughout the campaign.

“The 2-1 loss at Blackpool (at Bloomfield Road in February) highlighted some areas to improve, as he was involved in both goals conceded due to lapses in concentration.

“His set-pieces weren’t always on point, particularly in latter days of the season as the threat dried up, when compared to the extremely high standards he set earlier in the campaign, while nagging injuries made things difficult during the latter weeks of his time with Ipswich.”