Ipswich Town vs Newcastle United

The stakes are high for Ipswich Town and Newcastle United as they lock horns in a Premier League clash for the first time since 2002.

Firmly embroiled in a dreaded relegation scrap in their first Premier League season in over two decades, Ipswich Town snatched a last-gasp winner to topple Wolverhampton 2-1 last time out, reducing the gap on 17th-placed Leicester City to only two points. It was only their second league win of the season (D6, L8), with both arriving away from home. Therefore, manager Kieran McKenna must galvanize Ipswich’s underwhelming home form (D4, L4) to increase their hopes of avoiding an immediate return to the second tier. Ominously for the hosts, only two teams in Premier League history have ever gone winless in their first eight home league games and went on to secure survival! Newcastle’s upcoming visit doesn’t bode well, given the Tractor Boys have only won two of their last 13 H2Hs (D4, L7).

In the meantime, Newcastle United earned the ultimate confidence boost ahead of this trip, dispatching Brentford 3-1 to secure an EFL Cup semi-final berth. Despite languishing in the Premier League’s lower-reaches pre-round, the Magpies trail sixth-placed Bournemouth by only two points following a thumping 4-0 home triumph against Leicester last weekend. That result halted their sub-par four-game winless league streak (D2, L2), marking their first top-flight clean sheet since the beginning of November. However, Eddie Howe’s men have struggled defensively on the road, registering just one shutout on eight Premier League travels this season. Based on Newcastle’s defensive woes, it’s hardly surprising they only won twice in those eight matches (D3, L3).