Ipswich manager Jim Magilton insists he will not be forced to pay over the odds as he continues his 'diligent' search for the 'right players'.The Tractor Boys are close to tying up a deal for Dutch defender Pim Balkestein from Heerenveen and have been linked with a £4million bid for Newcastle striker Shola Ameobi, but Magilton remains adamant he will not be held to ransom.

"I can reassure our fans that we are working very hard to bring the right players to the club," Magilton told the club's official website.

"There has not been a lot of business in the transfer market in general at the moment because it's still early days but we are working behind the scenes, monitoring situations at other clubs.

"The perception out there is that we are prepared to spend anything on a player. That's not the case and never has been the case. We are very prudent.

"What we want to do is make sure it's the right player for us. If we have to pay what we have to pay for a player to get the right man in, then we will but we will be very diligent in the way we do our business."

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