Manchester City vs Ipswich Town Preview

Premier League GW2

Manchester City welcomes Ipswich Town for their first home match of the Premier League season as they look to achieve five Premier League titles in a row. Another unprecedented feat. The promoted side has a promising young manager in Kieran McKenna, talented players like Omari Hutchinson, and a former Man City academy graduate in Liam Delap returning to the Etihad.

Here is the dashboard after game week 1. The next two matches up are against Ipswich (H) and West Ham (A). Far too early of course to read anything into the table, top scorers, and other results.

Previous Results

• Manchester City beat Chelsea 0-2 (A) in their first Premier League match of the season. Read our review here.

• Ipswich Town lost to Liverpool 0-2 (H) in their first Premier League match of the season.

Notable Injuries:

• Manchester City will be without Oscar Bobb due to a long term injury. Rodri is yet to be confirmed after returning from his summer break. Savinho is still being assessed after coming off with knee issues against Chelsea (A).

• Ipswich is set to be without Harry Clarke (calf), George Hirst (knee), Nathan Broadhead (thigh), Cameron Humphreys, Janoi Donacien (groin), Muric (calf), and Wesley Burns (thigh).

Ipswich Town Approach

It was a tough opening fixture for them but Ipswich managed to impress in the first half, particularly down to how their manager set them up out-of-possession to make the buildup difficult for Liverpool.

I’d expect a fairly similar lineup against Manchester City in the next match, you may see Jens Cajuste who arrived on loan from Napoli recently.

In the first half, Ipswich impressed with their high press and high defensive line. Liverpool built up with a narrow base which allowed the front three of Ipswich to cover more ground each and they had success until the second half Liverpool built with a much wider base. As well as that, switches were used from left to right which gave Trent Alexander-Arnold more time on the ball to pick out his attackers in front as Ipswich moved across to adjust.

City can make that adjustment quite easily, particularly with using Ederson into a back-four which will out-number the Ipswich back line. If they commit another to press then they’ll be outnumbered in midfield and City will expose it.

My guess then would be Ipswich using more of a high block rather than pressing too aggressively. They’ll need to figure out how to prevent De Bruyne and Rico Lewis in the buildup, drifting inside or to the flank to find pockets of space. Leif Davies struggled down the right side against Salah and if he’s fit, Savinho will turn him inside out as well.

Manchester City Setup here 

We saw against Chelsea (A) in the Premier League opener that City have ways to get around teams preventing central progression. That Kovacic can do a better job as the number six than we realize. Rico Lewis is ready. Guardiola wants to see wingers threaten on both sides.

You can read our full review of the match against Chelsea here.

Now heading into the game against Ipswich, I expect we’ll see a similar approach and personnel. In the first twenty minutes, we’ll see if Ipswich press high like they did against Liverpool and if City adjusts. They should be able to handle this quite easily given the players in the back line.

If City can set up 2v1s in the wide areas then they’ll have a lot of joy against Ipswich in the first half. Be aware that if possession is lost and Kovacic is unable to make the well-timed tackle, Ipswich can pose a threat in transition. Through Omari Hutchinson and Liam Delap.

There are a few places in the lineup Guardiola could change. If Savinho is still injured then that’s an obvious one but since he was seen back in training, my guess is he’s ready to go. In the back line, you could see Nathan Ake get his first start, and Kyle Walker as well. Ideally, you’d want to introduce Phil Foden and John Stones in the second half, depending on the score line for some minutes. Rodri was not reported to be in training this week so it’s very unlikely he will make the bench, let alone features. Provided he’s not injured, it’s good news for him to have this extended break. For the team to put in performances and get results without him.

We could see something more like this if Pep is without Savinho and wants to overload Ipswich with attacking players to deal with. I think it’s best to save Walker and Ake for the match against West Ham with the likes of Kudus and Bowen in transition.

I keep going back to this quote from Guardiola, who is careful with his words, about his expectations placed on the wingers. That’s why I’m confident Savinho and Doku get another start against Ipswich, ahead of Grealish whose injury status we are unsure of. If he was fit and didn’t come on against Chelsea, that’s not a good sign. Do not be surprised to see the wingers switch during this game as well.

There is one more small matter of llkay Gundogan and whether he returns to the match day squad. Sounds like Guardiola is saying he’ll be involved in the squad, I just doubt that’ll be from the start. After one training session, it won’t send the right message to the rest of the squad.

For more on the signing, his time at City, and his role in the team this season, check out our post on him returning below.

Ones to Watch: 

• Manchester City: Whether Ipswich press City or sit in their high block, having dynamic players in the wide areas will be key to cutting through or breaking them down. We got a taste of the threat Jeremy Doku and Savinho provide, at the Etihad they have a chance to build on that performance.

• Ipswich Town: Liam Delap will be a handful for teams this season, looking far more comfortable physically than when he first broke through for City. Running down balls in behind, down the channels, and applying pressure on defenders trying to play out from the back. Omari Hutchinson is another one to watch. Electic on the ball, will wriggle out of tight spaces with his footwork and will thrive if left isolated against his full-back. Another test for Gvardiol or Ake.

Predicted Lineup: Ederson, Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Doku, Savinho, Haaland

Season Average: 10/11

Predicted Score: Manchester City 3 - 0 Ipswich Town

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