
Dara O’Shea shared his frustrations after Ipswich Town’s 2-1 defeat to Middlesbrough
Ipswich Town captain Dara O’Shea voiced his frustration and disappointment after last night’s 2-1 defeat away to Middlesbrough.
The Blues were looking to secure their first away victory of the campaign, continuing their strong run of form. However, Cedric Kipré turned the ball into his own net shortly after George Hirst missed a penalty.
Morgan Whittaker added a second for Boro early in the second half, meaning that O’Shea’s header was merely a consolation.
“It was extremely frustrating,” he said after the match. “I thought the game was too loose and that was the problem. We had some great chances to convert in the first half and maybe kill the crowd.
“We obviously missed a penalty and that gives them a massive boost, but I just think we let the game get too loose and that’s not normally us.
“They were catching us on the counter a lot which is quite unusual for us, I just don’t think we were fully at it the way we should have been and could have been.
“If we score the penalty, the game maybe goes a different way and that’s just the Championship and that’s the nature of this league.
“Then in the second half, we came out and let them have too much time on the ball in the wide areas. That’s not our DNA, that’s not the way we’ve been playing, especially at home.
“We pride ourselves on being intense, getting to the ball and putting tackles in. We did that in spells, we just didn’t do that throughout the whole game. That’s what happens in this league.”
The frustration emanates from the first half. Ipswich had a header from Sammie Szmodics cleared off the line before Hirst missed from the spot, amid other chances to put themselves ahead.
In the end, they failed to do so and paid the price.
“This is football. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing, if you don’t take your chances, sometimes it comes back to bite you and it did today,” he explained.
“We just let the game go too loose which is really disappointing for ourselves. I’m saying the same things which show how frustrated I am.
“We had a great chance of coming up here and getting three points tonight. We caused them problems, we just didn’t cause them enough.
“It’s trying to find some control in anything. The game’s frantic, everyone’s frantic. We’ve just got to step up a bit more and understand that these moments happen in football and we’re able to react to them.
“It’s just about the next play and don’t let one moment affect us for a period. Alex [Palmer] did really well for us today and kept us in that game. Their keeper did too, I don’t think you can get away from the fact that he’s pulled off some great saves and we’ve been unlucky.
“Alex has been great today, I’m disappointed for him that we haven’t come away with the win. He put in a great performance like that and he’s conceded two goals which is disappointing for him.
“I hope everyone else is disappointed because nobody should be happy with that. He’s played well today and we probably haven’t digged him out as much as we should have. That’s the nature of the league.”
Away form is proving to be Ipswich’s Achilles’ heel at the moment. They are yet to win on the road, or even take the lead, and have struggled to put in convincing performances.
It’s something that the players have been keen to address.
“Of course we’ve spoken about it, it’s the elephant in the room,” O’Shea revealed. “Our away form hasn’t been where we want it to be, we’ve just got to find a way.
“I think we’re close, I don’t think there’s loads wrong that we’re doing. You go away to places like this and it’s tough, the crowd are on their side, it’s a Friday night and they’ve all come out. If things go our way in the game, maybe they quieten down and it’s a different game.”
If there’s one personal positive for O’Shea, it’s his goal – his first for the club.
He did well to meet Marcelino Nunez’s corner at the near post, flicking the ball into the net with a perfectly-placed header. In the end, it did little to lift his mood.
“It’s frustrating that the goal has come and we’ve lost,” he admitted. “It’s been a long time coming, I feel like I’ve been close at times and haven’t got the rewards.
“Today, it was a great ball in, worked the block well with Darnell [Furlong] getting in the right place and it’s been my trademark finish for a while that near-post header. I just need to keep improving and add more goals to my game.”
Now, all eyes turn to Tuesday night, when Charlton Athletic will visit Portman Road. Ipswich will aim to earn their fourth successive win on Suffolk soil.
“The beauty about the Championship is the quick turnaround,” O’Shea concluded.
“We’ve got to go again on Tuesday at home, which is nice to get back there and really put things right.
“We need to start putting the foot down now, kicking on and driving on. We know where our potential is as a group and we haven’t hit that yet.
“We’re not happy until we get to that point.”
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