Ipswich Town

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Ipswich Town captain Dara O'Shea says it will take a whole-squad effort between now and the end of the season if they are to achieve automatic promotion.

The Tractor Boys closed to within two points of second-placed Middlesbrough with Saturday's 2-0 win at Sheffield Wednesday and have a game in hand.

"It doesn't matter how you win the games now. Coming into this part of the season all that matters is the result at the end and we were on the right side of it against a (Wednesday) team that are good - I have maximum respect for them, they are a really dangerous side," O'Shea told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"Every team we play, you can tell they're up for it. We watch the games that they've played and when they play us, they'll play a totally different way, a different style, so it's going to take a small bit of time to adapt in some of the games.

"Of course the pressure's there, results go your way, they don't go your way, but that's football. We can't look too far ahead, we can't look at other results, we've got to focus on ourselves."

He added: "Each and every single one of us has got a massive part to play between now and the end of the season, it doesn't matter if you're starting all the time or you've only played a couple of minutes this season, everyone has the same job and the fans as well, they've got a massive job and they're helping us a lot.

"We can feel the passion (of the fans), and the frustration at times too, but it's never going to plain sailing this league."

Ipswich have a crucial home game at lunchtime on Saturday against Millwall, who have the same number of points but are below them on goal difference.

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Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna was delighted with his side's patience before they struck two late goals to beat Sheffield Wednesday and boost their automatic promotion bid.

Ivan Azon and Jack Clarke scored in the final 12 minutes at Hillsborough and Ipswich have climbed up a place to third, just two points behind second-placed Middlesbrough with a game in hand.

McKenna was also pleased with Ipswich's clean sheet and says they didn't panic when the early goal didn't come.

He told BBC Radio Suffolk: "We would have loved to have got an early goal, and we know that would have changed the game.

"We really emphasize trying to start fast and come out and get it, but we didn't manage to do that. We didn't take the couple of early chances we had, and then as the game wears on, you can get a little bit tense.

"Then it's about just staying disciplined and trying not to give anything away. It took to the later stages, we knew that might be the way and it was today.

"The bonus was we got a clean sheet, we didn't give much away, and we gave ourselves a chance to show our quality with the goals at the end."

Already relegated Sheffield Wednesday will try again to pick up a first home win of the season when they welcome Ipswich to Hillsborough on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Owls were denied only their second victory of the campaign when they conceded at the death to draw 1-1 with Watford last time out.

Fourth-placed Ipswich are unbeaten in five and just four points adrift of the automatic promotion spots, but have only managed to draw their past two Championship games.

• Sheffield Wednesday have lost their last three league games against Ipswich Town by an aggregate score of 10-1.

• Ipswich have only lost on two of their last 13 league visits to Sheffield Wednesday (W5 D6) and won 1-0 there on their last visit in September 2023.

• Sheffield Wednesday's last home league win on a Saturday was back in December 2024, when they beat Stoke in a 12.30pm kick off (D4 L13 since). In 3:00pm kick-offs on Saturdays, their last win at Hillsborough was in the 2023-24 season, 3-0 against West Brom in April 2024.

• Ipswich haven't won any of their away Championship games this season against sides currently in the bottom six of the table, losing at Oxford and Leicester and drawing with Blackburn.

• Ipswich Town's Jack Clarke has been involved in four goals in his last four league games against Sheffield Wednesday (3 goals, 1 assist) and scored twice on his last trip to Hillsborough for Sunderland in September 2023.

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Ipswich Town winger Jaden Philogene has returned to training after being sidelined since January because of a medial collateral ligament injury in his knee.

The 24-year-old has missed the side's past 10 league games but boss Kieran McKenna has not yet made a decision on whether the England U21international will make the squad for their trip to Hillsborough on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

There is also a question mark over midfielder Azor Matusiwa's availability - he is being assessed after going off the 3-3 draw to Stoke with a hamstring issue.

Defender Cedric Kipre will miss the game as he is suspended, while midfielder Anis Mehmeti and right-back Darnell Furlong are both on nine yellows.

However, McKenna is unconcerned about the impact the possibility of further suspensions will have on his team selection.

"You do consider things like yellow cards," McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"We will take everything into consideration but the first consideration is picking a team that will go and win the game.".

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Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna could hardly believe what he had seen after a stoppage-time penalty denied them three points at Stoke City.

Cedric Kipre was penalised for pulling back Lamine Cisse, having been denied a penalty himself in the final moments against Leicester City at the weekend, and the game ended in a 3-3 draw.

"We know we shouldn't end up in that situation and Cedric puts an arm on his shoulder but there was barely anything you could call a pull and if you compare that to the last minute on Saturday (against Leicester) and the level of contact there was on Cedric, there's a horrible irony there," McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"For that (penalty) to be given, having not had the one on Saturday given, and the impact that's had on two results, I can't find the words to describe that right now.

"Having performed as we did in the second half and being so close to a brilliant comeback victory, to have it taken away in the last few seconds is a devastating one.

"You have to move on and I believe we will show that on Saturday. There's going to be so much to take from tonight, there's negatives in there, things we need to do better, but there's some big, big positives in there from what the group showed in difficult circumstances and they're going to need to show those qualities, learn the lessons and put all that into the last 10 games."

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The Championship fixture between Portsmouth and Ipswich Town has been rearranged for a second time following two postponements at Fratton Park.

The Tractor Boys will head down to the south coast on Tuesday 14 April with kick-off set for 19:45 BST that evening.

The initial match was postponed in early January due to a frozen pitch and then again in February because of heavy rain.

Ipswich have now had five games postponed or abandoned this season, with a match against Blackburn called off for a waterlogged pitch, the two at Portsmouth postponed and then fixtures against Southampton and Hull City because of FA Cup progression.

The second Portsmouth postponement left fans frustrated as well as Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna who questioned the reasons behind the cancellation.

"The FA Cup one is what it is," McKenna told The East Anglian Daily Times., external

"However there's something that could be done differently for the Championship clubs who progress in that cup because it is a big challenge now for Southampton, but also for the teams who are playing against them, including us who already have a game to rearrange.

"The only rearrangement that still annoys me is the [first] Portsmouth one.

"We're going to have a lot of games, we're going to have tough games, but there are some brilliant games in there to look forward to. It should be a really exciting end to the season."

Ipswich Town midfielder Jack Taylor says they need to brush themselves down as they target a vital three points at Stoke City on Tuesday (20:00 GMT).

The Tractor Boys missed the chance to move into the Championship's automatic promotion places on Saturday after being held 1-1 by Leicester City, who lie 22nd in the table.

Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna said on Monday that the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) have since admitted they should have had two penalties at the weekend.

"Its obviously not great when it doesn't go your way," Taylor told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"It just reflects the fact that no one's going to do us any favours in the job that we've set out. So its down to us to brush ourselves down and attack [at Stoke]."

Despite the sense of injustice over Saturday's decisions by the officials, Taylor is not convinced that the Championship needs the introduction of VAR.

"I'm a bit in the middle. I think sometimes the referees need help, like the other day. But then you don't want to slow the play down," he added.

"Everyone loves the Championship because its so quick and so intense, and you see bigger tackles which, as a supporter, is what you want to see."

Victory for Ipswich on Tuesday would take them to within two points of second-placed Middlesbrough who host Charlton on Wednesday.

Taylor warns that it will not be easy to secure the double at mid-table Stoke despite victory over them at Portman Road in December.

"They played well when they came to us. They built up first phase really well, and it was a lot of us pressing, but they didn't really hurt us that much," Taylor said.

"They made us run which I think we matched up really well. But obviously, away from home is going to be a different sort of game, and hopefully we can put a performance on, and definitely get a result."

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Kieran McKenna is hopeful winger Jaden Philogene will rejoin the squad in the near future as they look to close the gap on the Championship's top two.

Philogene has been out of action since mid-January because of a knee injury and will again be unavailable for Tuesday's trip to Stoke City.

"Hopefully he will start team training this week. He's working with the rest of the coaching staff now but not with the team and hopefully he will get back to that level at some point soon," McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"It'll be good to have Jaden back. You're always going to miss someone of Jaden's quality. We know how demanding the schedule is going to be and we're going to need lots of options and availability being really good to get the results we want."

Philogene has nine league goals this season, five more than team-mate Sindre Walle Egeli, but McKenna is delighted with the young Norwegian's knack of scoring at important moments, as he did in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Leicester City.

"They've all been crucial goals. First goal at Coventry, massive goal - set us on the way to the points, Blackburn gets us a point. He's had four goals and they've all been pivotal goals," McKenna said.

"There's very few 19-year-olds playing regular minutes in this division so it's a fantastic experience for him to be doing it.

"It's going to be up and down over the course of a season with a player so young, coming to England for the first time, but I know he'll be so much stronger for the season that he's had.

"We believe he'll have some more big moments before the end of the season."

Ipswich have slipped five points behind the automatic promotion places in the Championship but have taken 10 points from a possible 12 in their past four matches.

Stoke have managed only five points from their past six outings with their solitary win coming against Oxford which means they are now 10 points short of the top six going into this game on Tuesday (20:00 GMT).

• Stoke have failed to score in their past three league games against Ipswich (D1 L2), with their two defeats in that run as many as they had suffered in their previous 16 against the Tractor Boys.

• Following their 1-0 win in December, Ipswich are looking to complete the league double over Stoke for the first time since 1987-88.

• Stoke won 2-1 against Oxford in their last home league game, but have not won consecutively at the bet365 Stadium since November.

• Ipswich have alternated between victory (3) and defeat (2) in their past five away league games, beating Watford 2-0 last time out.

• Stoke boss Mark Robins has lost each of his past five Championship games against Ipswich Town – twice with Huddersfield (2013-14), twice with Coventry (2023-24) and earlier this season with the Potters.

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Ipswich Town head coach Kieran McKenna feels his side were denied two penalties in the second-half of their 1-1 draw with Leicester City in the Championship on Saturday.

Sindre Walle Egeli equalised for the Suffolk side after Patson Daka had given the Foxes a first-half lead.

Cedric Kipre went down under a stoppage-time challenge from Hamza Choudhury but referee John Busby waved away their penalty appeals.

"I thought it was clear we should have had a penalty," McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"The referee said he didn't see it but for me you can't miss it because as soon as Dara (O'Shea) crosses it there's nowhere else to look and Cedric (Kipre) is ready to attack the ball and gets wiped out - I thought we should have had two penalties in the second-half."

Ipswich missed the chance to move into the automatic promotion places with second-placed Middlesbrough not playing at QPR until Sunday (16:30 GMT).

"I really liked us in the second-half, the way we chased the game and the pressure we put on," added McKenna.

"It is what it is, we take the positives, there are things we can take and improve like conceding a goal from a set-piece but the way we pushed in the second-half and dominated a Leicester side full of quality and pushed for the winning goal there are real positives in there."

Ipswich visit Stoke City in the Championship on Tuesday (20:00 GMT).

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Leicester City will be no pushovers when they visit Portman Road in the Championship on Saturday (15:00 GMT), according to Ipswich Town head coach Kieran McKenna.

The Foxes have slipped into the relegation zone after having six points deducted for breaching financial regulations, and on the back of a nine-game winless run, but McKenna says they still have plenty of quality.

"We felt it earlier in the season... you look at their starting 11 and they're as strong as anyone in the division," McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

"If you look at their Premier League experience and international caps and things like that they may even be the strongest team, but in the end it doesn't really matter, we know they have good players and an experienced manager - but we feel we're a good team with good players and it's up to us to show that."

Ipswich will still be without defender Ashley Young and forward Jaden Philogene although McKenna says the latter is nearing a return from a six-week absence with a knee injury.

"Jaden has made some pretty good progress this week, stepping up his ball work, but he hasn't trained with the group yet so isn't ready to be involved," he added.

Ipswich head coach Kieran McKenna became the club's fastest boss to win 100 games in charge when they beat Hull City 1-0 on Tuesday evening.

This was a Premier League fixture last season but while Ipswich are third and will go second with a win on Saturday, Leicester are one point adrift in the relegation zone and on a nine-game winless run in the Championship.

• Ipswich Town have won one of their past 12 league games against Leicester (D4 L7), a 1-0 home win in March 2013.

• Leicester are looking for their first league double over Ipswich since the 2013-14 season when they won the Championship title under Nigel Pearson.

• Ipswich have lost just one of their past 30 league games against teams who are 25+ points below them in the league table (W19 D10), losing 2-1 to Cardiff City in March 2024. At home, they last did so in February 2005 against Watford (W17 D4 since then).

• Leicester are winless in their past nine league games, last enduring a longer run without victory when playing outside the Premier League from February to April 2007 in the Championship (10 games).

• Leicester have gone 29 consecutive league games without a clean sheet – the last side to go 30 games in one season without a shutout was Wolves in 2011-12 in the Premier League (30), and outside the top flight it was Colchester in the Championship in 2007-08 (38).

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Earlier we asked what you make of the news that, from next season, the Championship play-offs will be expanded to include the teams finishing seventh and eighth?

It was announced on Thursday morning that EFL clubs voted in favour of expanding the play-offs from four to six teams.

Here's a selection of your comments...

Josh, Derby: I don't believe this is necessary. I do think that the play-off format should be aligned throughout the top five leagues, but expanding isn't needed. Better distribution of the monies involved and establishing a clear matchday structure to balance various men's and women's leagues would be a better use of everyone's time. This strikes me undue American influence.

Callum, Dartford: I think it's a good thing so teams can push for promotion that thought they wouldn't get near the play-offs.

Cato, Sheffield: If we adopted it to this season, it means that eighth-placed Derby (on 51 points) have about as much a chance of going up as third-placed Millwall (on 63 points). Plus, to accommodate the extra games, would they extend the season into June? I don't like the idea of it at all, and I hope it's short-lived.

Steve, London: Another example of football being ruined, week by week. Don't you dare think about implementing VAR too.

Mark, Stafford: As a Stoke fan, I think it's good news. The season has come to a grinding halt due to being decimated by injuries. Add to that, the quality of what is coming down from the Premier League, it would mean upsets can happen and still allow teams in that mid-table race to dream of greater heights!

Richard, Stansted: Absolutely ridiculous. What is the point of a league format if you are going to make it a bigger lottery to include even more teams at the end of the season? It also brings teams that are even less ready to actually be in the Premier League into scope. But mostly it's the undermining of the league format which makes no sense. I'm a Derby fan - and we look like we would have a chance of benefiting from this if it were in place this season.

Andy, Nuneaton: Anything that expands the opportunities for those outside of the parachute teams is a good thing. We need to get away from this elite view of the Premier League. If it was up to them, they'd stop automatic promotion and relegation and have a system like Rugby Union, where it's based on meeting certain criteria. The eighth-placed club in the Championship getting to the PL? Bring it on!

Ron, Hayling: Money, Money, Money. Players complain about the amount of games they play with the league games and cup competitions so the intention is to play even more at the end of the season. Owners will make some money but that's all that matters!

Barry, Dartford: Yes it's a fantastic for everyone, all the small teams as well as the big boys, to have something to play for. It will give the end of the season something to look forward to.

Benjamin, Poole: I'm a Charlton fan, so it's unlikely we'll come 8th in the Championship any time soon, however, this is ridiculous. More pandering to Americans to make it more likely they'll make money, which is the only thing they care about. Sporting integrity out of the window again. Shame as I felt the Championship was the last bastion of quality and integrity combined. Game has gone.

Broughton, Derby: Absolute ridiculous, put it back to the old days of three straight up, no play-offs. If you don't make top-three you don't deserve to go up.

Julian, London: The worst decision from a footballing point of view ever! The National League teams have been trying to change their system to be like the current EFL system so it seems a very strange decision for the EFL to take. You can finish 8th after 46 games and still get promoted - sporting integrity has been totally lost with this decision. Money over integrity every time!