This is another interesting game in the Championship schedule, with both of these sides performing surprisingly well. While many may have predicted such success for Ipswich, the same could not have been said about Crystal Palace who were tipped for a real season of struggle. However, as this fixture nears, the home side occupy 6th spot while Palace are one place higher in 5th.
Having completely revamped his squad during the summer, it would appear as though Paul Jewell is finally reaping the rewards out of his new look Ipswich side. The Tractor Boys experienced an indifferent start to the campaign and after even losing 7-1 to Peterborough in the opening weeks, there were several doubts cast over Jewell himself. However, the former Wigan manager appears to have completely turned around the Portman Road outfit and they enter this fixture as one of the form sides of the division. Tuesday night’s 1-0 victory over Portsmouth capped off a memorable few weeks for Jewell’s side, with the club now on an unbeaten run of six games. More impressively, the Tractor Boys are just one point behind 2nd place West Ham, meaning that they could finish the weekend in the automatic promotion zone.
The same can also be said about Crystal Palace, who are situated one place higher than their opponents due to a superior goal difference. Incredibly, this means that Palace could also find themselves in 2nd place by Saturday evening, even though most of the bookmakers completely wrote them off for relegation at the start of the year. However, rookie manager Dougie Freedman is proving to be quite the miracle worker, after transforming this relegation threatened side into one who are constantly grinding out results. The Eagles approach this encounter having won three out of their last four and impressively, two of those victories on the road. Considering the fact that Crystal Palace couldn’t buy an away victory in recent years, the Selhurst Park outfit are now a completely different side and should not be underestimated.
As for team news, Ipswich just have the one concern as Ibrahima Sonko struggles with a hamstring problem. The former Reading man picked up the injury in the club’s last outing, although other than that Paul Jewell has no other worries to contend with. Crystal Palace meanwhile have received some good news, with Dean Moxey and Owen Garvan both expected to return to the reckoning. Moxey has been struggling with a virus in recent weeks, while the former has had a knee complaint.
Both of these sides have performed extremely well in recent weeks and while Crystal Palace are sat higher in the league than their opponents, we think Ipswich’s home advantage will count for everything. In a tight game, our tip will be a 2-1 win for the Tractor Boys.
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