Latest: Ipswich Town boss emerges as Middlesbrough candidate, Exeter City interim man makes damning League One admission as Portsmouth critic reveals half-time challenge in MK Dons triumph

Here are the latest headlines.

Middlesbrough keen on McKenna

Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna has emerged as a possible contender for the vacant Middlesbrough role, according to journalist Graeme Bailey.

Steve Gibson is reportedly a keen admirer of the Tractor Boys’ head coach after an impressive start to the League One campaign.

This has seen Town taste just one league defeat this term as they sit behind leaders Plymouth in the break-away group at the top of the standings.

And his attractive brand of football has seen him linked with a switch to the Riverside Stadium as the Reds go in search of Chris Wilder’s successor.

Although the Middlesbrough owner is keen to bring in McKenna, he is reportedly unwilling to pay compensation for the man still under contract at Portman Road.

After Ipswich’s stunning start to the season, there’s no doubt that fee would’ve significantly risen as the Tractor Boys eye a return to the Championship for the first time since 2019.

Exeter’s League One level-up

Exeter interim boss Joe Nicholson believed the Grecians’ defeat to Charlton underlined the step-up in quality from League Two.

City slipped to a 4-2 loss at The Valley as they continue with life without Matt Taylor in the dugout, in their first season back in the third tier.

With very-much the same squad who won promotion from League Two last term, Nicholson insisted the difference between the two sides was evident.

He told South London Press: ‘Overall I was happy with the performance, the lads were excellent for the majority of it.

‘You are at a level now where you get punished for mistakes more than you do in League Two. We came off on the wrong side of that a little bit today.

‘We had our chances to level it up. If we’d done that it would’ve been really hard for Charlton to respond after the run they’ve been on. That’s the fine margins of the game that we’re in.

‘It was probably a harsh reality of League One football, when you’ve got such good players knocking about that you can concede in games where you don’t feel you deserve to get beaten.’

Barton’s break-time challenge

Joey Barton has revealed the key reason behind Bristol Rovers’ success against MK Dons on Tuesday.

The Gas continued their recent string of good results with a 1-0 win over Liam Manning’s struggling side at Stadium MK.

The Pirates’ head coach admitted he set his side a half-time challenge which set them on their way to a ‘commanding’ three points.

‘I thought, certainly coming away from home, we were as commanding as we’ve been this season. I thought we showed a real level of maturity and we just kept improving as the game went on.’ Speaking to Bristol Live.

‘We were worthy of those three points, albeit getting that first goal was going to be key.

‘I challenged them at half time to find another gear. We were comfortable in the game.

‘They had periods of possession but we spoke about it in the build-up to the game in terms of coordinating our pressure, and I thought the lads got better and better at that as the game went on.’