Ipswich Town go into their clash against Huddersfield Town knowing that a point will be enough to secure promotion to the Premier League. Alex Jones previews the action.
And here we are…
45 games, 27 wins, 12 draws and just six losses. They’ve scored 90 goals, the most in the entire division heading into this weekend, and conceded 57.
This would be a monumental campaign for any team, never mind one that was in League One last year, even if they did accrue 98 points in the previous campaign. In fact, since manager Kieran McKenna took over on December 19th, 2021, no team in England’s top four tiers have picked up more points than Ipswich (per @TheSportsman on X).
Regardless of what happens, we’ll look back at some amazing moments, be that Wes Burns’ trivela against Coventry City or the chaos of games against Rotherham United and Bristol City. That’s not even mentioning Jeremy Sarmiento’s late goals against Leicester City and Southampton or the win at Coventry City. There’s far too many to list here.
Now they need to finish the job.
The task at hand
Ipswich know exactly what they need to do. Avoid defeat to all-but-relegated Huddersfield Town and they’ll be promoted to the Premier League.
It looks simple on paper, but football rarely is. Huddersfield have won just nine games all season, the second fewest in the division behind rock-bottom Rotherham United, but there will always be fears of a repeat of the freak defeat to Maidstone United in this season’s FA Cup.
The good thing is that Ipswich will play to win, and the Terriers don’t tend to score too many goals, bagging more than one just once since Valentine’s Day. If the hosts can score early, it should settle some nerves. On top of that, QPR and Watford are the only sides to stop them from scoring at Portman Road this season, and neither were able to win.
Pressure does remarkable things, however, and Kieran McKenna’s side will need to remain calm to get this over the line.
Terriers on the brink
Going into the final day, Town fans will see Leeds as the villains and Huddersfield as a side character. This day is ultimately about them, but the Terriers have their own story too, albeit one that will end in a sour note.
That’s because their relegation will be confirmed, barring a minor miracle. They’ll need to win at Portman Road, hope that Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle lose to Norwich City and Hull City respectively, and then aim to overturn a 15-goal swing.
Simply put, it’s not going to happen, regardless of what the actual results are in Suffolk and elsewhere - the required scorelines are too far-fetched. Given that they’ve had four different managers and mustered just nine wins all season, it’s not a big surprise to see them heading for League One.
That being said, beware the wounded animal. Despite their off-field issues and the rivalry with Leeds, the visitors will be in no mood to lie down and accept defeat at Portman Road. They’ve got nothing to lose, they’re playing for pride and many players may be looking to catch the eye and earn a move to a Championship club in the summer.
What lies ahead
There will be a burning desire to get this 90 minutes of football over and done with. Unless Town run riot, the home fans are unlikely to enjoy the match itself.
Supporters are allowed to dream. Some have an eye on a place in the Premier League, thinking about away days at Anfield, Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium. They haven’t been able to experience such games since 2002, and top-level football has changed a lot since then.
Promotion would put Ipswich on a global map. The town would benefit massively and some of the biggest stars in world football would be visiting Portman Road, which would be an amazing feeling given the level that the Blues were playing at as recently as 12 months ago.
Of course, there’s always the other possibility, the chance that Ipswich slip up and Leeds beat Southampton. In which case, McKenna’s men would need to get themselves up for a play-off semi-final against Norwich City, West Brom or Hull City. Avoiding that at all costs will be the absolute number one priority.
Any changes?
This team selection will be the biggest of McKenna’s managerial career to date. He has to get it spot on, and thankfully, he has plenty of options at his disposal, albeit that he revealed that there will be some late fitness checks ahead of the match.
We’ll likely see one change at the back, with Luke Woolfenden set to rekindle his partnership with Cameron Burgess after George Edmundson dealt expertly with Haji Wright and Ellis Simms in midweek. The rest of the back line should stay the same.
Likewise, Sam Morsy should partner Massimo Luongo in midfield, but it’s the three players behind the striker that’ll be interesting. Conor Chaplin was dropped for the win at the CBS Arena, but his impact on the team probably shows that he deserves to start here. Who out of Burns, Omari Hutchinson and Nathan Broadhead would drop out? It’s a tough call.
From there, this game may be best suited for George Hirst, who can use his clever movement to pick out gaps in Huddersfield’s rigid back line.
All in all, it won’t be too dissimilar to the side that thrashed Exeter City 6-0 last season to seal a place in the Championship - and that is remarkable in itself.
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