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Category: Ipswich town

  • Ipswich Town deal rewarded AFC Wimbledon for transfer gamble

    Ipswich Town deal rewarded AFC Wimbledon for transfer gamble

    The relatively unheard of Ali Al-Hamadi arrived at Plough Lane in 2023 on a free transfer. Little did AFC Wimbledon know this would prove to be one of their best signings in recent years.

    The man from Maysan endured a tough time at Wycombe Wanderers, where he found match minutes hard to come by. This led to him making the move to Wimbledon in January 2023, which would certainly prove to be the right decision.

    The Dons took a gamble on singing the unknown youngster, which has paid off massively for both parties. Al-Hamadi is now a Premier League player, and his former side are mounting a promotion charge in League Two.

    The young forward made his way through the ranks at Tranmere Rovers and Swansea City in his youth career, before signing his first professional deal with the Swans in 2020. He also had a trial at Derby County the following year, which ultimately didn’t land him a gig with the Rams.

    He would go on to have a successful trial at Wycombe though, landing a contract at Adams Park which initially saw him link up with their B team. A strong loan spell with Bromley put Al-Hamadi in great stead to break into the first-team at Wycombe, but this wouldn’t be the case sadly.

    He struggled for minutes under Gareth Ainsworth and didn’t manage to particularly catch the eye when he did play. On a cold December evening in Plymouth, the attacker failed to impress and was replaced with fellow youngster Tjay De-Barr. This would be the beginning of the end for Al-Hamadi, as his colleague impressed the boss to push the Iraqi further down the pecking order.

    When the January window rolled around, Al-Hamadi was free to find a new home. He joined AFC Wimbeldon in League Two, for what was initially a free transfer, but the Chairboys had an invested interest. It was a good thing they did, as nobody could’ve foreseen what the ex-Swansea forward would go on to do.

    It took the attacker a month to find his feet in League Two with his first goal, but once he did, the goals didn’t stop coming. He was named EFL Young Player of the Month in March 2023, after his electric form for the Dons.

    By the end of the 2023-24 campaign, Al-Hamadi had notched 10 goals in 19 league appearances for Johnnie Jackson’s side, which was seriously impressive considering he’d only been at the club for half a season. This goalscoring form had certainly left any disappointments of his time with Wycombe in the dust.

    Plenty of clubs were monitoring the then 21-year-old, but the real test would be whether he could keep up his form the following season. He did just that, netting a hat-trick against his former youth club, Tranmere, on his way to 13 goals in the first-half of the season. By now, clubs were queuing up to secure Al-Hamadi’s signature.

    Championship side Ipswich Town were the ones lucky enough to snap him up from the Dons, in a deal that was reportedly worth around £1m. Whilst an unknown amount was due to head to Buckinghamshire, it’s fair to say that Wimbledon’s gamble to bring the striker in paid off, as they’d make a huge profit by selling him to the Tractor Boys.

    His time at Portman Road has been largely unsuccessful thus far, but with Town securing promotion to the Premier League, it was unlikely that Al-Hamadi would be able to adapt from League Two to the top flight overnight.

    This gamble from the Dons not only helped the Iraq international get his career back on track and achieve his dream of becoming a Premier League player, it also brought plenty of money to Wimbledon, which has allowed them to mount a promotion challenge this .

  • Liverpool without three players for Ipswich Town after new injury confirmed

    Liverpool without three players for Ipswich Town after new injury confirmed

    Liverpool head coach Arne Slot.

     

    Liverpool are back in action this afternoon with the visit of Ipswich Town to Anfield. And the Reds will be hoping to extend their lead at the top of the table on a busy day in the Premier League, with Arsenal and Nottingham Forest both playing at the same time.

    Arne Slot has options at his disposal for the match, which is sandwiched between two key Champions League games. Lille were dispatched on Tuesday 2-1 at Anfield and now Liverpool need just a point at PSV Eindhoven this coming Tuesday to secure top spot.

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    The Reds, however, failed to come through the match against Lille unscathed, with a new injury confirmed this week. Indeed, Curtis Jones is now set to spend a spell on the sidelines after picking up a knock in the first half of the match.

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    The midfielder was hurt just before half-time and while he was able to continue after treatment for the remainder of the first half, he failed to reappear for the second half.

    Slot confirmed on Friday that Jones was not available for the Ipswich match and that he was now a doubt for PSV or the trip to Bournemouth next weekend.

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    “He went off during half time which is mostly not a good sign and it wasn’t because he won’t be available for the game tomorrow,” Slot said.

    “The rest we have to see how long it will take. I am not expecting months, of course. Well not ‘of course’ but I am not predicting months, but let’s see if he can play against PSV or Bournemouth.”

    Jones joined Joe Gomez and Diogo Jota on the sidelines, with the pair both out for “weeks rather than months”, but certainly unavailable in the immediate future.

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    Gomez has been absent since injuring his hamstring during the first half of the 5-0 Premier League win at West Ham United on December 29.

    Jota, meanwhile, has missed the last games after complaining of having suffered a muscle injury during his goalscoring cameo from the bench during the 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest last midweek. The Portuguese has already missed a significant chunk of the campaign after an impact injury to his upper body at home to Chelsea back in late October.

  • McKenna’s flexibility gives Ipswich improbable shot at beating the drop

    McKenna’s flexibility gives Ipswich improbable shot at beating the drop

    THIS SEASON’S RELEGATION battle bears an eerie comparison to last year’s.

    All three of the promoted sides went straight back down last season, and this year’s trio of new arrivals currently occupy the drop zone. Southampton, like Sheffield United last season, look doomed; another ill-equipped squad going down with a wretched points total.

    Seven-straight defeats and sour murmurs regarding transfer strategy mean Leicester look set to follow Burnley as an established Premier League name unable to gain a footing upon their return to the elite.

    Ipswich Town are therefore the Luton Town of this enterprise: the long-absent underdogs playing in a throw-back stadium who end up with the best chance of staying up.

    Ipswich may yet break the comparison: where Luton fell short last year, Kieran McKenna and his players might yet succeed.

    Ahead of today’s trip to Anfield, Ipswich are 18th, but level on points with 17th-placed Wolves, who today face Arsenal.

    Everton are four points ahead and so are barely within touching distance in 16th place. Wolves are Ipswich’s primary target, and so they will be giddy with rumours Matheus Cunha might leave for Arsenal before the end of the transfer window.

    Ipswich’s aggression in the transfer market should aid their survival hopes: Having already added Jaden Philogene and Ben Godfrey, they this week completed the loan signing of the highly rated  Julio Enciso from Brighton, whose 2023 winner against Man City was nominated for the Puskas Award. (Enciso’s arrival is hardly great news for Ireland’s Sammie Szmodics, who is currently sidelined with injury.)

    Only Brighton have had a higher net spend in the Premier League since Ipswich since last summer: in fact, Ipswich’s net spend is currently more than Southampton and Leicester’s added together.

    So while the club have given Kieran McKenna a greater chance to succeed, it is McKenna who gives the club its greatest chance of success.

    McKenna’s rise is truly astonishing: a first-team coach at Manchester United under Jose Mourinho at only 31, and a Premier League manager with back-to-back promotions on his CV by the age of 37. McKenna can also claim one of the greatest character references in the modern game, given he has been anonymously dismissed as “school-masterly” by sources within the United dressing room. Anyone who didn’t fit into United’s rancid culture should be a good fit elsewhere.

    McKenna does not suffer from dogma which appears to have condemned his fellow promoted teams. Leicester, you could argue, were unlucky to lose Enzo Maresca to Chelsea, especially given McKenna was himself linked with the job. Their error, however, was to replace Maresca with Steve Cooper, whose playing style was antithetical and unsuited to those at his disposal. Ruud Van Nistelrooy is now labouring to sift the wreckage.

    Southampton, meanwhile, were doomed from the moment Russell Martin demanded his players play the same way as they did in the Championship, despite the slight complication of coming up against vastly better players. Martin preferred to bemoan his crowd’s anxiety at his side’s kamikaze passing rather than analyse the root of that anxiety.

    McKenna, though, is flexible and pragmatic in a way that’s increasingly rewarded in the Premier League.

    “We have a brave identity of play that we want to stay true to, but we know it’s a huge step up, so we need to be clever how we compete for points”, said McKenna during the course of this season.

    An interesting piece by FourFourTwo prior to season’s start accentuated the fact that McKenna is not wedded to any specific passing style, pointing to figures which showed Ipswich ranked mid-table in the Championship last year for short, long, and medium-length passes. McKenna’s Ipswich, in other words, were a little bit of everything, and to great effect.

    Arijanet Muric, for instance, was signed from Burnley in the summer to be the number one goalkeeper, with his primary skillset being his comfort with the ball at his feet. He is regrettably error-prone with his hands, however, and McKenna has dropped him in favour of the more stolid – and solid – Christian Walton.

    In earning promotion from League One, McKenna played a back three, but switched to a 4-2-3-1 in the Championship. This season he has broadly stuck with that back four, though has occasionally flipped to a back three.

    This has sometimes worked (a creditable 2-2 draw away to Fulham; a narrow 1-0 loss away to Arsenal) and sometimes, er, has not. (See last week’s 6-0 hammering at home to Man City.)

    If Ipswich are to stay up, they need to add more goals to an attack carried on Liam Delap’s broad shoulders. They have scored only 20 goals in the league so far – the third-lowest in the division – and Delap is responsible for eight of them. Perhaps Enciso and Philogene are the right recruits to address that issue.

    Today’s game at Liverpool is their most difficult remaining fixture, and after today only six of their remaining 15 opponents are in the top half. Southampton and Wolves are winnable must-wins at home, while their final away games are at Everton and Leicester.

    And if Kieran McKenna keeps Ipswich in the Premier League, the club’s greater battle begins – keeping Kieran McKenna.

  • Morgan Whittaker drama must remind Plymouth Argyle of Ipswich Town fiasco

    Morgan Whittaker drama must remind Plymouth Argyle of Ipswich Town fiasco

    So the day has finally come, it’s time for Plymouth Argyle to say their goodbyes, and wave Morgan Whittaker off to pastures new.

    With the news that Middlesbrough have had a £6 million bid plus add-ons accepted for the left-footed ace, it looks as if the transfer saga surrounding the Greens’ star is finally coming to an end.

    There have been rumours and conjecture surrounding Whittaker for the best part of a year, with reported interest in him during the last two transfer windows, before the Pilgrims finally caved under the pressure, not least from the player himself.

    Having failed to turn up for Argyle’s midweek clash with Burnley on time, and consequently being left out of the matchday squad for the 5-0 defeat to the Clarets, the writing was on the wall regarding a move away from the club, with it only being a matter of time before things came to a head.

    For members of the Green Army who are of a certain vintage, it will bring back memories of another fan favourite who fought his way out of the club in the middle of a Championship season.

    There were plenty of questions for Miron Muslic surrounding Whittaker’s future on Wednesday night, with the forward evidently in attendance at Home Park for the mauling by the visiting Clarets, but not involved in the match day squad.

    The Austrian was tight-lipped before the showdown at Home Park, but opened up after the final whistle, with the Argyle player failing to turn up in time for selection, in the biggest sign of his intentions in the current transfer window.

    “Morgan didn’t show up,” Muslic told the BBC. “We had a game today and he was in the selection and he wasn’t there.

    “It shows the mentality, or even the lack of mentality. I think you always have your responsibilities and you are under contract.

    “You have to be professional, you have obligations, not only towards Argyle as an organisation, you have an obligation towards your team-mates and you don’t let your team-mates down, never.”

    From then on, it looked like a foregone conclusion that the former Swansea City man would be leaving the club, with Middlesbrough and Burnley both having bids rejected earlier in the month as the Pilgrims continued to play hardball.

    Lo and behold, just days later Boro have had a bid accepted, with the player set to join Michael Carrick at The Riverside, with the prospect of a play-off campaign very much still on the cards.

    All the goodwill Whittaker had gathered during his time as a Pilgrim has dissipated overnight with his latest antics to force a move away from the club. You can score all the goals you like, but show a lack of respect to the Green Army, and you are persona non grata in the blink of an eye.

    With a relegation battle on their hands right now, another player has jumped the sinking ship, and there will be plenty of Janners who see the similarity with Davis Norris 17 years ago, with the midfielder forcing a move to Ipswich Town in the middle of the season.

    Argyle’s stature within the football pyramid leaves them susceptible to players wanting to go on to bigger and better things after a strong stint at Home Park, with Whittaker and Norris two prime examples.

    Back in the mid-noughties, the Greens were once again dabbling with the finest of the EFL, with back-to-back mid-table finishes in the Championship proving them to be more than capable of holding their own in the second tier, with a squad littered with burgeoning talent.

    With the likes of Akos Buzsaky and Peter Halmosi pulling the strings in midfield, Barry Hayles and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake making all the difference up top, and Krisztian Timar patrolling the backline with Marcel Seip, this was an Argyle team for the ages, before it all came tumbling down in January 2008.

    In the blink of an eye, Argyle lost a number of their top talents that month, with Hayles and Ebanks-Blake on their way, as well as Buzsaky and academy graduate Dan Gosling, while David Norris completed the set late in the month.

    The latter would have hit Argyle the hardest, with the tenacious midfielder having been part of the triumphant side that stormed to the third tier title in 03/04, before establishing itself in the Championship for the years to follow.

    As the Green Army waved goodbye to one of their greats, the tale within the boardroom began to surface, with the good feeling towards Norris suddenly turning sour, with then-Chairman Paul Stapleton revealing all, via the Ipswich Star: “The problem began because last summer when he (Norris) was told by Ian Holloway that he could leave the club in January.

    “David got a bit confused, I think, and believed that the board had agreed he could leave in January.

    “January 2 came and he came to see me, saying he wanted to go. He saw me many more times in January, each time saying he wanted to go.

     

    “It took until January 31 for him to go because, all the way along the line, we told him we didn’t want to lose him. Two days before the transfer deadline, he told me he never wanted to play for Argyle again. That phone call seemed conclusive in my mind.”

    Anyone who is not willing to bleed green and white shouldn’t be anywhere near Home Park, and Norris was on his way before too long, having got his wish and a one-way ticket to Portman Road.

    His departure, along with half of the squad over the following months, paved the way for the start of the end for Argyle, with five consecutive seasons finishing within the bottom four of the division they played in, seeing them tumble from the second tier to the fourth, and clinging onto their EFL status.

    Things won’t be quite as bad this time when Whittaker leaves. That much is for certain, but it’s a case of the same old story for the green side of Devon this month; some things just never change.

  • Ipswich Town vs. Liverpool: Players to Watch

    Ipswich Town vs. Liverpool: Players to Watch

    When Liverpool plays Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Saturday, a number of celebrities will be on the field. Today, we look at some of the most well-known players to make sure you follow them all the way through.

    Mohamed Salah – When isn’t he the man to watch?! Mo Salah is in imperious form this season, scoring his 22nd goal of the season against Lille in midweek.

    The Egyptian winger has now matched last season’s league tally and is only two goals away from the magical twenty. Dominik Szoboszlai – Szoboszlai was badly missed in Liverpool’s recent little dip and appears sharp and positive after his return from illness. The Hungarian should be rested and ready for the return to league action because he was given a break halfway through the second half.

    Darwin Nunez: Despite not scoring in the middle of the week, Nunez’s all-action play complemented his game-winning brace against Brentford the previous week.

    The quick forward is eager to take an opportunity since he is trying to maintain a consistent position in the squad after Diogo Jota’s latest setback. Harvey Elliott: Since recovering from his injury, Harvey Elliott, another player who made an impression from the bench the previous season, has been playing well.

    The youthful player added to a strong second half performance by scoring in the midweek victory over Lille, although through a huge deflection.

    Liam Delap has been leading the charge like a seasoned number nine and has been named Ipswich’s player of the season thus far. Despite Ipswich’s difficulties, the youthful player has eight goals and has been vying for an England call-up with his performances this year.

    The 25-year-old may try to take advantage of Liverpool’s forward-thinking full-backs after recording 18 assists in the team that won promotion the previous season. Jack Clarke: The Ipswich team has several talented young attackers, including Jack Clarke.

    The young player made an early impression at Sunderland and is still getting better. Clarke opened his Tractor Boy account in recent cup play, despite the fact that he has yet to score in the league.

    Kalvin Phillips, who once cost £50 million, is still working to turn around his dismal Man City career and return to the midfielder who started the European Championship final.

     

     

  • Ipswich Town vs. Liverpool Prediction, Pick, and EPL Odds

    Ipswich Town vs. Liverpool Prediction, Pick, and EPL Odds

    Is there anyone who can stop Liverpool from winning the Premier League? Ipswich Town will make an effort, but they will be up against a formidable opponent when they visit Anfield on Saturday, January 25 at 10:00 a.m. ET.

    It’s a classic case of David vs Goliath. The Reds are Europe’s top team. The Blues, meanwhile, are in the relegation zone and only one goal: to remain in the top level.

    Here are my Premier League odds and prediction for Saturday’s match between Liverpool and Ipswich Town.

    Arne Slot has adjusted to the difficult job of taking over as manager of Liverpool far more quickly than anyone could have predicted.

    They lead their nearest rivals by six points and have one game left in the Premier League.

    They have given up the fewest goals and scored the most.

    Liverpool also has a flawless record and leads the Champions League group stage, which they further cemented last Tuesday when they defeated Lille of France.

    Fans were so moved by this performance that they renamed Anfield “Arne Field.”The demanding schedule is undoubtedly having an impact, but it’s also clear that younger players and team members who play less are stepping up when needed. Ibrahima Konaté or Jarell Amorin Quansah will probably start as Joe Gomez is not available. Darwin Núñez might make a comeback to the starting lineup while Diogo Jota is still out.

    With his brace in last Saturday’s thrilling victory over Brentford, Núñez was the hero.

    Additionally, Luis Díaz is probably going to be played as a center forward once more, with Cody Gakpo and Salah playing as wingers.

    Obtain App Log-In Probabilities The logo for the Public Betting Picks promotion Get $30 in Sweeps Coins when you spend $10 or more! Players must be U.S. residents and be at least 18 years old. Void where prohibited. Only on mobile devices. Play sensibly, please. ACTION1: Promo Code EPL Odds, Pick, and Prediction for Liverpool vs. Ipswich Town Profile of the Author: Camil Straschnoy Updated @ 12:41 AM EST on January 25, 2025 Download the app to view the feature image for the Liverpool vs. Ipswich Town prediction, pick, and EPL odds.Credit for Soccer: Mohamed Salah is pictured (photo courtesy of Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images). Is there anyone who can stop Liverpool from winning the Premier League? Ipswich Town will make an effort, but they will be up against a formidable opponent when they visit Anfield on Saturday, January 25 at 10:00 a.m. ET. It’s a classic case of David vs Goliath.

  • Ipswich Town will be without three Liverpool players due to a confirmed fresh injury.

    Ipswich Town will be without three Liverpool players due to a confirmed fresh injury.

    Ipswich Town’s visit to Anfield this afternoon marks Liverpool’s return to action.

    On a busy Premier League day when Nottingham Forest and Arsenal play at the same time, the Reds will be looking to increase their lead at the top of the table.

    With the game positioned between two crucial Champions League matches, Arne Slot has a number of alternatives. Liverpool only needs to win a point at PSV Eindhoven this coming Tuesday to guarantee the top spot after defeating Lille 2-1 at Anfield on Tuesday.

     

  • Premier League match between Liverpool and Ipswich Town: TV channel, forecast, team information, and lineups

    Premier League match between Liverpool and Ipswich Town: TV channel, forecast, team information, and lineups

    The Tractor Boys have only won two of their 37 prior games at Anfield, both 1-0 victories, in 1995 and 2000. Liverpool had won their last three Premier League encounters with Ipswich by an overall score of 13-0.

    Will Liverpool continue to lead the Premier League table by at least six points? Despite having 37 shots in West London, the most by any away team in Premier League history since records began, the Reds had a great day on Saturday and needed two goals from Darwin Núñez in stoppage time at Brentford to win the game.

    Arne Slot’s team is currently six points clear at the top and has gone undefeated in 17 Premier League games after Arsenal blew a 2-0 lead against Aston Villa at home, ultimately being held to a 2-2 draw. The Reds then defeated Lille 2-1 at Anfield on Tuesday night to keep their perfect Champions League record, with Mohamed Salah breaking.

    For Tuesday’s triumph over Lille, Arne Slot rotated his lineup, with Darwin Núñez, the hero of the previous weekend, likely to return to the bench along with Ibrahima Konaté, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson, Alexis Mac Allister, and Cody Gakpo.

    Curtis Jones, who was substituted at halftime in the Champions League, is doubtful, and Joe Gomez and Diogo Jota are out.

    On the first day of the season, Mohamed Salah scored his first of 22 goals, and it would be shocking if he didn’t score another one here.

    Conor Chaplin and Sam Szmodics are also not likely to be fit, and Chiedozie Ogbene is injured. However, Julio Enciso, who arrived on loan from Brighton on Thursday, may make his debut.

    The £20 million winger from Aston Villa, Jaden Philogene, made his debut as a substitute against Man City last Sunday, therefore he might start this week.

    Kieran McKenna is probably going to continue with the back five that was used last weekend, even if it didn’t work at all, while Christian Walton will start in goal for the fifth straight Premier League game after unseating Arijanet Murić as the starting number one.

    Axel Tuanzebe, who made his first appearance since November due to a hamstring injury, could return to defense.

    Walton, Johnson, Godfrey, O’Shea, Tuanzebe, Davis; Morsy, Cajuste, Hutchinson, Philogene; Delap; Liverpool: (5-4-1).

    With eight goals this season, Liam Delap will probably play a key role if the Tractor Boys have any aspirations of pulling off a huge upset.

    Although it may not be an audacious forecast, every piece of information points to Liverpool winning handily at Anfield: Ipswich Town 3-0 Liverpool.

     

  • predicted starting lineup for Liverpool against Ipswich Town

    predicted starting lineup for Liverpool against Ipswich Town

    Despite playing one fewer game, the Reds lead Arsenal by six points at the top of the league table. When they play the team they faced in the season opener, they will be hoping to continue their strong play.

    Arne Slot has done incredibly well in keeping the dressing room happy, and he is most likely to give fringe players a chance to impress against PSV Eindhoven next in the Champions League after Liverpool have already secured a top-eight qualification.

    Against Ipswich, he is likely to drop some of the players who started against Lille.

    Ahead of the match, the Reds boss confirmed that Curtis Jones has picked up an injury and is set to be out for a while, but it shouldn’t be for a lengthy spell.

    Diogo Jota and Joe Gomez are also currently out injured.

    Liverpool have used Ibrahima Konate carefully, as he has just returned from a knee injury.

    The French defender is anticipated to start alongside Virgil van Dijk at the back, replacing Jarell Quansah, who is more likely to start in the Champions League match against Eindhoven next week.

    Slot can once more give Konate a much-needed break. Kostas Tsimikas should keep his spot in the starting lineup, Kostas Alexander-Arnold should start at right back instead of Connor Bradley, Alexis Mac Allister will return in midfield in place of Jones, Harvey Elliott has shown well recently and will receive more playing time from the bench.

    Mohamed Salah is showing no signs of slowing down.

    Darwin Nunez should be looking to add more to his goal tally following his brace against Brentford in the previous Premier League game. Luis Diaz started in the last game, and the 28-year-old could be rested. Cody Gakpo is more likely to start ahead of him.

  • Ali Al-Hamadi to Stoke, ‘bundle of aggression’ and why Ipswich are letting go

    Ali Al-Hamadi to Stoke, ‘bundle of aggression’ and why Ipswich are letting go

     

     

    Ali Al-Hamadi helped Ipswich Town win promotion from the Championship last season after joining from AFC Wimbledon in January.

    Ali Al-Hamadi helped Ipswich Town win promotion from the Championship last season after joining from AFC Wimbledon in January.

     

    Stoke City are turning to Ali Al-Hamadi as they try to find a way to get the team scoring more regularly in the all-important last three-and-a-bit months of the season. Mark Robins has lost Tom Cannon but recalled Nathan Lowe from loan and is hoping Ipswich Town’s Al-Hamadi will help provide a new dynamic in the Championship.

     

    Stuart Watson, chief football writer at the East Anglian Daily Times, has been able to offer an insight into what Al-Hamadi will bring to the bet365 Stadium.

     

     

    ‘Not surprised’ – Mark Robins delivers verdict as Nathan Lowe starts life back at Stoke City with goal

    How would you describe Al-Hamadi as a player? What are his strengths and weaknesses?

     

    SW: He’s a bundle of energy and aggression. Chases and attacks everything. At times that’s looked a little raw, but it’s hard to give a full assessment given he’s only started three games for Ipswich.

     

    Certainly played his part in getting Ipswich’s Championship promotion over the line in the second half of last season. A brace in a 6-0 home thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday was probably the highlight.

     

    Why are Ipswich letting him go?

     

     

    He’s just risen too quickly. This time last year he was playing in League Two for AFC Wimbledon. Making the giant step up to the Premier League was always going to be a big ask and a limited pre-season, after groin surgery, didn’t help his cause.

     

    He was close to joining Derby on loan last summer, but Ipswich had to pull the plug on that after failing to land another striker. It’s just as well they did, because an injury to George Hirst left Ali as the main back-up to Liam Delap.

     

    Hirst is fit again now, Jaden Philogene and Julio Enciso have been added to the attacking unit, so Al-Hamadi has been allowed to leave to continue his development.

     

    What’s he like as a character, on and off the pitch?

     

    He is, by his own admittance, ‘quite a confident person who will fit in anywhere I go’.

     

    Ipswich fans took to his personality and playing style very quickly after he arrived last January.

     

    “I think it’s a very important thing in football nowadays to have a connection with the fans,” he said. “I’ve always had it at the clubs where I have been because I wear my heart on my sleeve. Hopefully, they can see what it means to me to be representing the club every time I’m on the pitch.

     

    “I’m quite an emotional person and I think the supporters tend to like that because you’re showing a bit of passion and a connection with them on a human level, rather than just being a footballer who steps out on the pitch and does his job.”

     

    Anything you can tell us about Al-Hamadi that we wouldn’t already know?

     

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    Ben Wilmot has been ruled out with a foot injury as Stoke City take on Oxford.

    He’s got a fascinating back story. Born in Iraq, his father was imprisoned by Saddam Hussein for peacefully protesting against the dictator’s regime and his family were granted asylum in Toxteth, Liverpool. He grew up on a council estate playing street football and is a big Liverpool fan.

     

    His career path in England is really interesting too. Took a risk on leaving Tranmere, didn’t quite make it at Swansea, had trials at Derby and Forest, had a year out of the game, signed for Wycombe before moving to AFC Wimbledon and catching fire.

     

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