Ipswich Town manager Paul Jewell has revealed that the club has made bids for five players as the January transfer window deadline approaches.
Three of those concerned are believed to be Portsmouth players, with Jason Pearce and Joel Ward strongly linked with a move to Portman Road as the South Coast club look to ease their mounting debts.
"We are looking to improve the team and not just for this season but in seasons going on," Jewell told the club's website.
"We have offers in for five players. They are all players, young players, that are at an age that they can help take Ipswich Town on."
The 47-year-old also complained about the difficulty of signing a new player in the modern transfer market.
"Signing a player now, any player, is so complicated - and so frustrating," he added.
Town are currently just a place above the Championship's drop zone and host leaders West Ham in their next fixture on Tuesday.