Mick McCarthy wants Ipswich Town midfielder Luke Hyam to go out on loan

Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy has signalled his intentions to send Luke Hyam out on loan after the midfielder made his return from a 10-month absence.

Hyam, 24, has not played since the FA Cup third-round defeat to Southampton in January due to a knee injury that required surgery over the summer.

He was back in action for the Championship side's Under-21 outfit this afternoon and McCarthy is now keen for the academy product to go out on loan to gain first-team sharpness.

"He will probably go out on loan for a month next week," McCarthy told the club website.

"He has been out for a long while and we have a lot of options in midfield with [Cole Skuse], [Jonathan Douglas], Giles Coke, Kevin Bru, [Jay Tabb] and [Ainsley Maitland-Niles] can play in there and we've got Teddy Bishop to come back in as well.

"If Luke is in the squad and does all the travelling and training but is not getting games, that isn't any good for him - or us. He needs to get some first-team football under his belt."

Sixteen games into the Championship season, Ipswich sit 10th in the table after back-to-back wins before the international break. They host Wolverhampton Wanderers tomorrow.