The second period lacked the intensity of the first as both sides struggled to craft anything clear-cut. Delap continued to impress and forced Leno into a good save as he swivelled and shot inside the Fulham box.
Emile Smith Rowe then came close to scoring in consecutive Premier League games, but a decisive block from Jacob Greaves prevented his 65th-minute effort from finding the net.
Strong defensive play at both ends maintained parity until the final whistle, with Leno reacting sharply to deny Omari Hutchinson in stoppage time.
Kalvin Phillips made his first Premier League start for his new side, while Sander Berge enjoyed his Premier League debut for Fulham after being introduced from the bench.
Player Ratings
Ipswich: Muric (7); Tuanzebe (6), Woolfenden (6), Greaves (8), Davis (6); Morsy (5), Phillips (6), Ogbene (6); Szmodics (6), Hutchinson (6), Delap (9)
Subs: Cajuste (5), Clarke (8), Al-Hamadi (5), Chaplin (n/a)
Fulham: Leno (8); Tete (7), Diop (7), Bassey (7), Robinson (8); Pereira (6), Lukic (6), Smith-Rowe (5); Traore (8), Muniz (5), Iwobi (7)
Subs: Berge (5), Jiménez (7), Wilson (n/a), Cairney (n/a), Reed (n/a)
Player of the Match: Liam Delap (Ipswich)
McKenna excited by Delap progression
Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna:
“It was a great moment [Delap’s goal], wasn’t it?
“It’s his first goal for the club and the club’s first Premier League goal at Portman Road for 22 years. I enjoyed his all-round performance, each week he’s getting stronger, he’s learning, he’s got great growth to come.
“He’s got great potential, we have real faith in Liam and we are enjoying working with him.”
On Ipswich’s overall performance:
“I think the players have come away from the first three games with more belief to be honest.
“It was a good solid performance from us which showed the growth in the team. We were competitive and had the better of the second half and were the more likely team to win against an established Premier League team.
“To produce a performance as well-organised, coordinated and with good spirit and qualities, it was a positive sign.”
Silva laments second-half slump
Fulham boss Marco Silva:
“It was a tough game against an aggressive side. They have great support which demanded us to win duels and beat the pressure.
“First half we did this better than the second. They scored in a moment where we were in control and we should have done better.”
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