Ipswich Town vs Bristol City
EFL Championship
Date: Friday, 30th December, 2016
Kick-off: 19:45 UK
Venue: Portman Road, Ipswich.
EFL Championship
Date: Friday, 30th December, 2016
Kick-off: 19:45 UK
Venue: Portman Road, Ipswich.
There hasn’t been much festive cheer for fans of Bristol City or Ipswich. Two sides who came into the season with hopes of at least securing a top half finish come into this match in poor form and in 16th and 17th places in the league. So far they’ve kept faith with their respective managers but the pressure is certainly growing on Lee Johnson and Mick McCarthy.
Of the two, it’s Bristol City you have to fear for most. After a bright start to the season they’ve really lost their way and have lost 7 of their last 8 matches coming into this one, including all of their last four. Keeping the ball out of their own net has become a real problem and that was evident once again as they let a 2-1 lead turn to a 3-2 defeat at Wolves on Boxing Day. Away from home they’ve struggled for most of the campaign, losing 67% of their Championship away games this term and taking just 0.67 points per game on the road overall.
Therefore, Ipswich will have plenty of reason to think this is a game they can win. Their form hasn’t been great but there have been positives to take in recent months. Certainly in the final third, they’ve been much improved and they’ve netted 3 goals in games, twice over the past month. They’ve avoided defeat in 75% of their home matches, which isn’t terrible given their overall position and certainly Bristol City right now are unlikely to offer them one of their tougher tests.
Therefore, it’s definitely very hard to see the Robins winning this, particularly given their poor away record. Whether Ipswich have enough about them to win it outright is more debatable given they do draw a lot of games, including 42% of their home matches this term. However, with the bookies struggling to decide on a favourite, backing Ipswich 0.0 Asian Handicap at 17/20 looks like it might be the way to go as the hosts do look the more likely victors and with your money back if it finishes level, that looks a smart bet.
Ipswich vs Bristol City: Head-to-head stats
The first leg clash was a 2-0 win for Bristol City, which extended their unbeaten run against Ipswich Town to 5 matches. Bristol won 3 games during the period and all the wins have come at home, while the 2 away games at Ipswich ended in draws.
However, Ipswich haven’t lost at home to Bristol in the last 8 matches in all competitions. The latest two are draws and overall stats read 5 wins and 3 draws.
Ipswich vs Bristol City: Prediction
Bristol are fast becoming one of the most vulnerable sides in the league and are coming to Portman Road with low confidence. Ipswich on the other hand, are a slightly better side at home and will fancy their chances here.
Both teams have issues in defense which have seen them conceding heavily in recent outings. And therefore, we will see a winner at the end of 90 minutes here. Ipswich is the team to back for a win here, especially when it is offered at the odds of 2.55.
Ipswich vs Bristol City: Bet Tips
Ipswich Town to win at 2.55 (17/11)
Over 2.5 goals at 2.10 (11/10).
