This is Ipswich’s second huge game in the last few days after the Tractor Boys faced table topping QPR on Tuesday night. They were soundly beaten 3-0 in that outing and it’ll be interesting to see how they respond as they face a Cardiff City side who are sat in 2nd place. The Bluebirds are also looking to bounce back having unexpectedly lost their last game 2-1 to struggling Leicester.
Not much was expected of Ipswich in this campaign after last season’s disaster. Despite huge expectations with Roy Keane at the helm and bucket loads of money being thrown at the team, things just didn’t click and the Tractor Boys had to be satisfied with a mid-table position. That meant that when this summer came and there was such little transfer activity, supporters feared the worst. However, as it turns out Town have made an extremely good start to the season and they currently sit in 5th position. Their 3-0 defeat to QPR on Tuesday happened to be their first loss of the season and other than that, they have three wins and two draws to their name.
Cardiff are also flying and the Bluebirds sit in 2nd place, with thirteen points to their name. They may have lost their last game, but before that they were absolutely flying having recorded four straight wins. While a lot of focus has been on the signing of Craig Bellamy, the Welshman hasn’t featured for the past few weeks due to injury so their success can’t be attributed to his influence. It appears as though other players are stepping up to the mark instead, with the likes of Jay Bothroyd and Chris Burke already bagging six league goals between them this term. The fact that Bellamy isn’t contributing makes the Bluebirds appear even more daunting and you can only imagine that they’ll strengthen their position as the season progresses.
As for team news, Ipswich look set to be without Shane O’Connor and Darren O’Dea who are struggling with hamstring and knee injuries respectively. Roy Keane also has the dilemma of handing Connor Wickham a start, after the youngster impressed on various substitute appearances. Cardiff on the other hand have plenty of injury worries and Danny Drinkwater and Michael Chopra look almost certain to miss out through injury. Elsewhere, Dave Jones is sweating on the fitness of Craig Bellamy, Jay Bothroyd and Seyi Olofinjana who are all penned in for late fitness tests.
While Ipswich have performed well this term, a lot of that success is due to their form on the road. Cardiff on the other hand have picked up quite a few points away from home and we think they’ll bounce back from Tuesday’s defeat with victory at Portman Road. 2-1 Bluebirds.
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