Ipswich Town 0-2 Everton: Stuart Watson's verdict

Jack Clarke fires a golden early chance over the bar. (Image: Steve Waller)

BIG EARLY CHANCE 

How would this game have played out had Town taken a glorious chance in the fifth minute? We’ll never know. 

Omari Hutchinson’s incisive pass set Wes Burns charging away up the right to an almighty Portman Road roar. When the Welshman cut the ball back into the heart of the box, an unmarked Jack Clarke looked destined to score... but he skied his shot high over the bar. Was there a bobble? I’m not so sure. Trying to finesse into the top corner was the wrong choice. This was a get your chest and knee over the ball and make sure you hit the target opportunity. Still, it’s easy to say from the stands.   

There was a similar ‘what if?’ feel to the West Ham game when Jacob Greaves and Liam Delap weren’t able to score headed chances at 1-1 and 3-1 respectively. 

No doubt about it, Town need to be more clinical if they are to start tipping the margins their way. There is little room for profligacy at this brutally unforgiving elite level. 

Michael Keane celebrates after doubling Everton's lead in the 40th minute. (Image: PA)

PREVENTABLE GOALS

Not conceding soft goals would also help.

The powerful, angled, top corner finishes from Iliman Ndiaye and Michael Keane were both superb. Neither should have had the opportunity to unleash such strikes though. 

Look back at the 17th minute opener. Can Jack Clarke do more to stop Jack Harrison cross? I think so. Should Dara O’Shea just head behind rather than nodding back into danger when backpedaling? Yes. Should Wes Burns, facing his own goal under pressure, just hook away or kick behind rather than trying to take a touch? Undoubtedly.  

The second goal, which was a real body blow as half-time approached, was equally frustrating. Following a short corner, the first delivery into the box was cleared and there were enough players around Dwight McNeil on the edge of the box to deal with the situation. Clarke and Liam Delap are spun too easily though, both Sam Morsy and Kalvin Phillips charge out and fail to make contact, leaving Keane unattended.  

It follows on from the Blues shooting themselves in the foot at West Ham and Man City too. This level is hard enough as it is without gifting the opposition goals. 

Michael Oliver checks the VAR monitor before deciding to overrule his decision to award Ipswich a penalty. (Image: PA)

VAR-CICAL 

Another thing Town are going to need to get results at this level is a little bit of luck and their fair share of refereeing decisions along the way. 

Would this game have been different had Michael Oliver stuck with his original decision to award the Blues a penalty in the 26th minute? Again, we’ll never know. 

Jack Clarke did superbly to dance his way through traffic in the box. When pulling the trigger, did he slip or did McNeil run into the back of his leg? It’s hard to tell. Oliver, well-placed, was quick to point to the spot though.  

Where the real controversy comes is why the VAR officials felt the need to intervene. As Kieran McKenna rightly points out, they’re only meant to be there to highlight ‘clear and obvious’ errors to the referee. This decision did not fall into that category. 

Can Oliver, having been sent over to the monitor, then not have the conviction to stand by his own decision? McKenna says the feedback afterwards was ‘when you're getting information fed into your ear then it's difficult to go against that’. If that’s the case, then that’s wrong. It's the tail wagging the dog. 

This technology was brought in to eradicate the major travesties, not for emotion-sapping, game-flow killing, slow-mo replay pedantry. 

To be honest, I find discussions about officiating really boring. That’s not why we watch the game and this wasn’t why Town lost this match. Nevertheless, McKenna’s right to highlight it. If you don’t make a fuss then there’s a feeling you don’t get the credit in the bank. 

Everton will point out that they weren’t given a penalty for a carbon copy incident recently when Dominic Calvert-Lewin's leg went into Newcastle defender Dan Burn as he looked to shoot. To be fair, consistency is something we all cry out for. 

McKenna, however, will feel his side are due a decision given the perplexing non-use of VAR when Leif Davis was bundled into by Savinho at Man City back in August. 

Time will tell if 'these things even themselves out'.

Kalvin Phillips fires a free-kick over the bar during a flat second half. (Image: Steve Waller)

FALLING FLAT 

Equally as frustrating in this game was Town’s second half performance. 

Everton are a side that have twice thrown away 2-0 leads to lose 3-2 this season, while Ipswich are a team that have built a reputation for stirring comebacks and late goals – especially at Portman Road. 

The Blues had the stronger bench too. Sean Dyche had been forced to name two keepers and two inexperienced youth graduates among his subs. McKenna had Conor Chaplin, Sammie Szmodics, Nathan Broadhead, George Hirst, Jack Taylor and Chiedozie Ogbene up his sleeve. 

Town were never quite able to ignite the crowd and create a grandstand finish though. Part of that was down to Everton being well-organised and streetwise. Part of it was down to far too many unforced errors being made. As those moments racked up, you could feel a bit of belief drain from players and supporters alike. 

The first shot on target didn’t arrive until the 80th minute. Town ended the match with just two. You'll be going back a long way for the last time that happened on Suffolk soil. 

Kieran McKenna gives instructions to Luke Woolfenden. (Image: PA)

DEFENSIVE RESHUFFLE 

McKenna revealed afterwards that both Jacob Greaves and Ben Johnson dropped out the team through injury. Greaves is going to be out ‘for a few weeks’ with a hamstring problem. That’s a major blow given how well he’d taken to top-flight football. 

With Axel Tuanzebe potentially sidelined for ‘a few months’ after his freak hand injury, Town have now been robbed of two defenders who had started the season in fine form. 

As a result, Luke Woolfenden returned to the team for the first time since the end of August, while Cameron Burgess, who only returned from international duty in Japan last Thursday, made his Premier League debut. To be fair, I thought both did alright in the circumstances. 

Leif Davis, Sam Morsy, Omari Hutchinson and Liam Delap are the only four players to have started all eight league games so far this season. Late signings, injuries and limited training time (due to international breaks) have not helped the Blues build chemistry in the opening weeks of this campaign. 

Aro Muric prevents Dominic Calvert-Lewin adding a third for Everton late on. (Image: Steve Waller)   

SOBERING FORTNIGHT 

Exactly two years ago, Town suffered back-to-back defeats to Lincoln and Cambridge in League One and the Papa John’s Trophy respectively. Eight players from that season's squad featured in this game. 

Ipswich are in the top-flight for the first time in 22 years. Everton haven’t been outside of it since the mid-50s.  

Sean Dyche is now in his 10th season as a Premier League manager. This is Kieran McKenna’s first. 

The Toffees’ starting XI had more than 2,400 combined Premier League appearances between them. Ipswich’s contained 187. 

The perspective point is a fair one. Perspective isn’t going to put points on the table though. 

There was a fragile feeling around both West Ham (no home points) and Everton (no away win this calendar year) after difficult starts to the campaign. Town weren’t able to put pressure on those cracks though. Instead, they gave them both a helping hand. 

No doubt about it, it’s been a sobering couple of weeks.

McKenna’s right in saying that games can get away from you quickly at this level. The fear is that the season, already 20% gone, could do the same. 

Every day’s a school day under the Blues’ level-headed boss. His players are going to have to learn fast.