Before The Whistle: Ipswich Town v Fulham

Written by Drew Heatley on 30th August 2024

We’re back on the road to face our second promoted side on the bounce.

Whatever happens on the day, we’ll know the composition of the squad until at least January, with the transfer window closing on Friday night. Will Jay Stansfield be in it?

Marco Silva is likely to revert to the XI that got the three points against Leicester last Saturday, although we’ll all be watching closely to see if Joachim Andersen gets in ahead of Issa Diop. The latter has started the season strong, and though Joachim picked up an assist in midweek against Birmingham, I feel like he’ll have to settle for a place on the bench – for now.

The same goes for Sander Berge. He also played in the Carabao Cup this week, but he doesn’t look as match fit as our Danish centre-back, so Sasa Lukic will have the chance to build on his impressive performance against the Foxes last week.

We’ve won our last six in a row in league and Cup against the Tractor Boys – but make no mistake, this is a different animal. Ipswich will have the bit between their teeth following the two toughest opening fixtures they could get against Liverpool and Manchester City, so we’ll have to be on our guard from the off. Our midfield mix of Lukic, Andreas Pereira and Emile Smith Rowe worked much better last week than it did at Old Trafford – I’m expecting another well-oiled performance here.

A win would turn a promising start an impressive one, ahead of the infuriatingly early international break. And with some winnable fixtures in September… I’m starting to get ahead of myself. Here’s to a focused and committed performance tomorrow. You Whites.

ℹ️ MATCH DETAILS

Kick-Off: Saturday, 3.00PM
Stadium: Portman Road
Competition: Premier League
TV Channel (UK): None

⚖️ MATCH PROBABILITY

Ipswich: 32.9%
Draw: 26%
Fulham: 41.1%

🥊 MOST RECENT MATCHES

Nov 23: Ipswich 1-3 Fulham
Sep 20: Ipswich 0-1 Fulham
Jan 18: Fulham 4-1 Ipswich
Aug 17: Ipswich 0-2 Fulham

🎙 NEW PODCAST: Some Might Jay

We take a look back at the Carabao Cup win over Birmingham City, look forward to Saturday’s trip to Portman Road to face newly-promoted Ipswich Town, and prepare for Deadline Day