Manchester City vs Ipswich Town

Manchester City’s Premier League title defense continues at the Etihad Stadium against newly-promoted Ipswich Town.

Erling Haaland aptly opened Manchester City’s Premier League account for 2024/25 as the reigning champions eased past Chelsea 2-0 on the opening weekend following a penalty shootout win against Manchester United in the Community Shield. Pep Guardiola’s troops can now win their first two league matches for a third consecutive season, heading into their first league encounter against Ipswich since 2001 as overwhelming pre-match favorites. The Citizens have an account to settle with the Blues after losing both league H2Hs the last time they shared the stage with the Suffolk outfit, a season which resulted in them being relegated from the top flight. These are different times, with Man City entering this round amidst an intimidating 30-match unbeaten streak (W24, D6), not to mention a resounding record of beating eight of the last nine newly-promoted teams to visit the Etihad via multi-goal margins.

Meanwhile, Ipswich Town’s long-awaited Premier League return was the subject of an expectedly poor start as title contenders Liverpool ran out 2-0 victors at Portman Road last weekend. Ipswich can count on a raucous away support on their first Premier League travel since May 2002 after selling all traveling tickets for this fixture. Ex-Manchester United coach Kieran McKenna has an added incentive to upset the odds at the Etihad and snap Ipswich’s poor record of losing six of their last seven top-flight away matches (D1). McKenna was the mastermind behind the Tractor Boys’ promotion campaign in 2023/24, where they fared above expectations on the road (W12, D6, L5). With Man City conceding precisely once in five of their last six home league outings, there’s an outside chance for Ipswich to maintain their decent away run.