Match Preview: Ipswich Town v Southampton (Monday, 4.30pm)

Monday’s late match between Ipswich Town and Southampton promises to be one for the neutrals, as two of the Championship’s most free-scoring sides go head-to-head.

Ahead of the game at Portman Road, the Blues and the Saints sit top and joint-second in the goal-scoring charts, with 81 and 74 goals respectively.

Striker Conor Chaplin leads the way for the home side, having bagged 13 goals in their 39 games to date.

And Adam Armstrong has been the main man in the opponents’ penalty box for Southampton, with 19 goals.

Ipswich are top of the table after 39 games, of which they have won 25 and drawn nine, earning 84 points.

Southampton are three places behind Town in fourth, with 22 wins and eight draws putting them on 74 points.

In Václav Hladký, the Blues can rely on one of the league’s safest pair of hands. He has kept 13 clean sheets in his 39 appearances this season, and only two other ‘keepers – Leeds United’s Illan Meslier and West Bromwich Albion’s Alex Palmer – have been able to prevent the opposition scoring on more occasions in the Championship.

In the Saints’ net, Gavin Bazunu has 10 clean sheets in 37 games. He has conceded a goal every 76 minutes, 10% more often than the 84 minutes between goals for Hladký.

The hosts are in fantastic form in the Championship, with five wins and one loss from their last six games.

With three wins and a draw over that period, the away team’s form is worse – they have taken 10 points from 18, compared to Ipswich’s 15.

Ipswich’s last match was on Friday, a 1-0 win against Blackburn Rovers, with Chaplin getting the goal for the Blues.

Southampton drew 1-1 with Middlesbrough last time out, also on Friday, with Adam Armstrong on the scoresheet.

Monday’s match will be refereed by Michael Salisbury, who is taking charge of his first Championship game this season.

He is yet to oversee a match featuring either Ipswich or Southampton this season.

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Ipswich Town v Southampton
Championship | Portman Road
Monday, 1 April 2024 @ 5.30pm

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