Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna branded ‘unsackable’ by club’s former striker Darren Bent

Former Ipswich Town striker Darren Bent has insisted that Kieran McKenna is ‘unsackable’.

McKenna has worked wonders since being appointed Tractor Boys boss in 2021, guiding the club to successive promotions and a return to the Premier League for the first time in 22 years.

Victories have been hard to come by so far in the top flight with Town having won just one of their 14 outings to leave the team in the relegation zone, three points from safety ahead of Sunday’s home clash against Bournemouth.

In his role as a pundit on talkSPORT, Bent was asked if the powers-that-be at Portman Road should consider making a change in the dugout – a notion that the ex-Town frontman immediately shut down.

Bent said: “You can’t put everyone under the same cloth. If Manchester City win one in 14, yes that’s not good enough because it’s Manchester City. But for a newly-promoted side, it’s just about survival.

“I know they’ve been beat a lot and they’ve only won one game, but if you were to go through their fixtures – when have they been blown away? West Ham is the only game where I think they’ve been well and truly smashed.

“Of course he’s not blame-free, but to suggest he should be sacked is nonsense. He’s unsackable – he has to be.

“It’s not a free pass but I’d say he’s unsackable. You look at what they’ve done over the last couple of seasons, that’s got to come into it. Back-to-back promotions, you can’t just say away you go.”

McKenna, who saw his side lose 1-0 to Crystal Palace on Tuesday night, is due to hold his pre-Bournemouth press conference this afternoon.