Ipswich Town lost 2-0 at Sunderland this afternoon. Andy Warren hands out his player ratings.
Christian Walton
Had little to do in the first half, other than calmly claim one cross and punch well for another.. He conceded twice late on, to the only two shots on target, with the keeper stuck in traffic as he tried to claw a corner out of the air for Luke O’Nien’s opener. 6
Janoi Donacien
This was the defender’s 50th Ipswich appearance, more than three years on from his debut, and he defended well in this game while getting forward on several occasions to cut it back into dangerous areas. 7
Toto Nsiala
The centre-half has had a tough old time at the Stadium of Light in an Ipswich shirt. For the second season in a row, he was on the wrong end of a very harsh penalty decision for handball. This one was silly, with the ball lashed at him from close range by Ross Stewart. He could do little more than try to protect his face. He had survived earlier penalty appeals after tangling with Stewart in the first half, an incident home boss Lee Johnson described as ‘stone wall’. Overall he defended well enough in open play here but will leave unhappy. 7
George Edmundson
Town’s best player in this game seemed to be on the end of every loose ball, either in the air or on the ground, as he kept the Sunderland strikers largely at bay and held the line well. Very unfortunate to end on the losing side here. 8
Bailey Clements
After impressing against Oxford last weekend, the youngster was given another opportunity here on a big stage. He got through the game fine, making two mistakes which gave Sunderland chances to break into the box but doing well enough to clean up after his own errors. Did get forward on a few occasions but held back on others. 6
Sam Morsy
Sunderland boss Johnson highlighted the Ipswich Town midfield’s display in this game, which saw both Morsy and Lee Evans ‘roll out’ of their central positions to give the Blues a good base from which to work. Morsy saw plenty of the ball, moved it well and had a couple of opportunities to shoot from the edge of the area. Sadly, he couldn’t hit the target. 7
Lee Evans
Played well in this game, just as his midfield partner did. Saw plenty of the ball and switched it on Cook’s instructions in order to make angles for the visitors to play from. Picked up an injury before the break, which looked like it would take him out of the game, but he was good to continue. 7
Sone Aluko
Had some real joy for first 30 minutes of this game as his tight control and clever feet caused problems for the home defence, opening things up for Ipswich down their right flank. Was a little quieter after the break, in a second half which saw him send a decent chance over the top of the bar. 6
Bersant Celina
The Kosovo international had two big opportunities to score in this game, hanging out on the edge of the penalty area in search of cut-backs. The first came from a square Morsy ball, from which the resulting shot wasn’t strong enough, while Thorben Hoffmann made two decent saves to keep the Town attacker out, not long before the break. He was a danger throughout his time on the pitch but couldn’t find the big moment when his side needed him. 6
Kyle Edwards
The attacker got on the ball in some really good positions and teased the Sunderland defence with strong running and clever touches, without being able to find the final ball. That’s what’s missing from his game right now. 6
Macauley Bonne
No shortage of effort from Town’s leading man, who worked hard throughout and had some decent touches, but his only real effort on goal saw him hook into the hands of the goalkeeper on the back of Celina’s two chances. Was replaced with 10 minutes remaining. 6
Scott Fraser (for Celina, 69)
The first man off the bench came into a game which suited him, with Ipswich seeing plenty of the ball. But while he got on the ball well and played some clever balls, particularly one to slice open the Sunderland defence, he wasn’t able to find the big moment for his side. 6
Conor Chaplin (for Edwards, 69)
The attacker can feel a little unfortunate not to be starting games right now buy was given the final 20 minutes of this one. Had a couple of bright moments without being able to get on the ball in big areas. 6
Joe Pigott (for Bonne, 81)
On for the final 10 minutes of this game, which is longer than usual, but wasn’t able to impact the game. n/a
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