Ipswich have struggled to maintain their performance levels for 90 minutes (Image: Steve Waller)
TWO HALVES
Playing to a high level for 90 minutes has been an issue for Ipswich, particularly in the last few weeks.
First halves against Hull City, Leicester City, Stoke City and Sheffield Wednesday were poor, salvaged by what they did after the restart. On the flip side, Town played well in the opening 45 minutes against Millwall, but looked way off the pace after the break.
While it has cost them some points, they have probably been fortunate that opponents haven’t been able to fully take advantage by putting them to the sword. But it’s something that needs to be addressed, given the quality of teams that await after the international break.
Marcelino Nunez has been a key player for Town this season (Image: Ross Halls)
THE NUNEZ ISSUE
Marcelino Nunez starts, Ipswich tend to win. Is that what he offers on the pitch? His remarkable creativity, his set-piece delivery and understanding of how to play in a Kieran McKenna system? Absolutely.
Aside from the individual qualities, he makes the team better too. He’s a brilliant footballer, but one who has clear injury and fitness concerns which stem from his time at Norwich City. Recent ankle and hamstring issues have sidelined him for a fair chunk of 2026.
That shifts a huge burden onto Anis Mehmeti, who’s a real talent, albeit one that I feel thrives more playing off a narrow left-sided role instead of a central position. Finding the right balance without Nunez in the side has felt like an issue at times. He won’t be able to play every minute of the run-in.
Sindre Walle Egeli is still trying to find his feet in English football (Image: Ross Halls)
RIGHT WING DILEMMA
Wes Burns, like Nunez, has had injury issues off the back of a year-long ACL lay-off. Like Nunez, he won’t be able to start week in, week out when he returns to fitness.
£17.5m summer signing Sindre Walle Egeli has scored twice in the last block of games, against Watford and Leicester, but hasn’t really done much to convince fans that he should be a regular figure in Town’s XI.
Kasey McAteer, on the other hand, has arguably had a tougher start to life at Portman Road, but has had some sharp cameo appearances in recent weeks ahead of his start against Millwall on Saturday. This run of games, however, highlights it as a problem area.
Jaden Philogene’s return from injury creates a selection dilemma for the Blues (Image: Ross Halls)
BALANCE IN ATTACK
I can pick out Town’s best and most talented players, but I couldn’t tell you what their best team is.
Jack Clarke or Jaden Philogene? It’s clear that you can’t get both men onto the pitch at the same time without making the Blues’ attack look disjointed.
It doesn’t help that Mehmeti’s best minutes have come in that role, but he otherwise plays through the middle, but that’s where Nunez plays. Then on the right, there’s a clear drop-off in terms of ability.
Square pegs in round holes doesn’t work in this team, but you don’t want to bench your best players. I’m not sure we’ve seen Town strike that balance well enough recently.
Ivan Azon has improved in the last few weeks (Image: Ross Halls)
SORTING STRIKERS
On a more positive note, I’m feeling more positive about Ipswich’s striker situation, despite missing out one a no.9 in January, which felt like a colossal blow.
Ivan Azon is clearly improving. There’s work for him to do, like staying on his feet and being a bit more ruthless in front of goal, but he’s getting there. We’re also seeing better from George Hirst, who now has nine goals for the season, while Chuba Akpom remains a good option to have.
Azon’s goals against Wrexham, Swansea and Sheffield Wednesday make him the main man in my mind, and I think McKenna agrees. I’m feeling quite positive about that position at the moment.
Town have won just seven of their 18 away matches this season (Image: Ross Halls)
AWAY FORM QUESTIONS
Ipswich rank second in the Championship for home form but ninth for their away record, with a record of seven wins, five draws and six defeats on the road.
Their recent run probably isn’t the best way to judge it. It includes a terrible defeat at Wrexham, a professional win at Watford, a frustrating draw at Stoke and an underwhelming victory at Sheffield Wednesday.
But the performances still show a big gap between home and away form. It’s a clearly a topic of conversation among players and something that needs to be addressed, but Town’s seven-match unbeaten run – averaging just under two points-per-game in their last eight – has to be seen as a positive.
The Blues have had shaky moments at the back despite their strong defensive record (Image: Ross Halls)
DEFENSIVE SPLIT
Only Middlesbrough [37 goals conceded] have a stronger defensive record than Ipswich [39] this season. You can see why. Dara O’Shea has been a largely reliable figure at the back. Cedric Kipre has been a strong addition to the squad, while full-backs Darnell Furlong and Leif Davis have looked good too, helped by Christian Walton’s impressive clean-sheet record in goal.
Yet Town are prone to crumbling every once in a while, in a way that the teams around them don’t seem to do. Recently, we saw the defensive collapse at Wrexham and the appalling first half at Stoke – eight goals conceded in those two matches.
The negatives overshadow clean sheets against Watford, Swansea, Hull and Sheffield Wednesday. Between them, those teams had just seven shots on target against Town across the four games. There can be a lot of variance from game to game.
Kieran McKenna’s side haven’t won from behind since Jeremy Sarmiento’s iconic strike against Southampton in April 2024 (Image: Stephen Waller)
COMEBACK KINGS?
Ipswich’s last comeback win? That would be the 3-2 victory against Southampton in the 2023/24 Championship run-in, which will be more than two years ago by the time Town are next in action. Their last win after conceding first? You’re going all the way back to the Bristol City game on March 5th, 2024.
Ipswich trailed Wrexham, Leicester and Stoke in their last eight games. They came back to lead two of those games. They ended up drawing two and losing one.
Is it a psychological issue? Mentality? Just luck, all used up from that last promotion season? I’m not sure. I do wonder how you go about fixing something like this, it can’t be easy.
Ipswich have been on the wrong end of three incorrect decisions (Image: Steve Waller)
REFEREEING CONTROVERSY
For all the frustration around performances, the Blues probably should have four more points than they currently have on the board, which would have them in second place, two points clear of Middlesbrough with a game in game.
PGMOL have admitted that Town should have been awarded two penalties against Leicester, which would have given them a chance to take three points instead of one. The opposite happened at Stoke, where the Potters’ wrongly-awarded penalty cost them two points in stoppage time.
On top of that, Kipre was wrongly booked at the Bet365 Stadium, which saw him banned for two games, while Davis was handed a harsh three-match ban for a retrospective violent conduct incident against the Foxes. Ipswich can feel hard done by from this run.
Ben Johnson has stepped in for the suspended Leif Davis (Image: Ross Halls)
ALWAYS BE READY
In the absence of Kipre and Davis, Jacob Greaves and Ben Johnson have come in from the cold to impress.
Greaves was arguably Town’s top performer in the win at Sheffield Wednesday, while Johnson kept Millwall talisman Femi Azeez quiet in the draw at Portman Road, despite playing out of position.
Neither man has played regular minutes, but they haven’t moaned. They’ve been patient and have delivered when called upon. That will be absolutely vital in the run-in. Ipswich have a stacked squad, especially compared to what their promotion rivals have on paper, and they need to make the most of it.