Brentford vs. Ipswich Town: Team News, Prediction, Preview for Championship Game
Ipswich Town kick off their 2015/16 Championship campaign with a trip to Griffin Park on Saturday, as they take on a new-look Brentford side hoping to get off to a flyer under manager Marinus Dijkhuizen.
The Bees have been busy in the transfer market since dismissing former boss Mark Warburton and have the look of a side that could once again surge into the top six.
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Mick McCarthy’s Ipswich will have something to say about that, though, with the club’s usual dose of pre-season expectation looking very much like becoming reality this time around.
Read on for team news, statistics and more as we look ahead to Saturday’s clash.
Team News
Brentford will have a few high-profile absentees for Ipswich's visit, with several players consigned to the treatment table.
New signing Josh McEachran will sit out with a foot injury, while the game will also come too soon for Sam Saunders, Lewis Macleod and Marcos Tebar.
However, the Bees will be boosted by the inclusion of defender Andreas Bjelland, who had previously been nursing a knock.
Manager Dijkhuizen confirmed that the 27-year-old, who touched down in west London for a club-record fee of £2.1 million in July, will be in action against Ipswich—via Tom Moore of Get West London:
“He's trained this week with the group. If he suffers no reaction then he will be in the 18.”
Bjelland will likely line up in the heart of a 4-2-3-1 formation for Brentford, with striker Andre Gray leading the line.
Gray has drawn two bids from Hull City after an impressive 17-goal campaign last season, but he will remain in black and red stripes for the matchup with Ipswich.
One man who Hull have managed to get their hands on from Griffin Park, however, is Moses Odubajo, who made the switch to the KC on Friday—as Philip Buckingham of the Hull Daily Mail revealed:
Ipswich Town have a few players out for their Championship curtain-raiser, too, with defender Christophe Berra suspended after being sent off in the team’s play-off second-leg defeat to Norwich City.
Jonathan Parr was expected to step in at right-back and shift skipper Luke Chambers inside with Tommy Smith, but the Norwegian will be watching from the sidelines after picking up a thigh injury.
Instead, teenager Josh Emmanuel is expected to get the nod on the right side of the defence, as Stuart Watson of the East Anglian Daily Times revealed:
Left-back Jonas Knudsen will make his debut at the other end of the back four, while Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Ryan Fraser could also make their league bows from the start.
Figuring out who to play up front will be McCarthy's biggest problem—albeit a welcome one.
David McGoldrick is back to full fitness, while Freddie Sears and Daryl Murphy showed just how lethal a pairing they could be in the latter stages of 2014/15.
The Ipswich boss could opt to play all three in a 4-3-3 formation, with Kevin Bru, Giles Coke and Cole Skuse tucked in behind.
Twenty-seven-goal striker Murphy will be the first name on the teamsheet, though, and he'll be looking to emulate a remarkable performance at Griffin Park from Boxing Day last year.
Last Time Around
Ipswich ran out comfortable 4-2 winners after an explosive start against the Bees last term, with Murphy, Paul Anderson and Smith finding the net:
Statistics (via 11v11)
Brentford have only beaten Ipswich Town once in the history of this matchup—a 3-2 victory back in their first meeting in 1955.
Murphy scored three goals against Brentford last season—two of which came from inside the six-yard box.
Brentford have won just one of their last six Championship games at home, drawing three and losing two.
Ipswich, meanwhile, have won just one of their last eight away games in the league—a dramatic 1-0 victory over Watford in March.
The Tractor Boys have lost one of their last five opening-day matches and started the 2014/15 season with a win over Brentford’s neighbours Fulham at Portman Road.
Brentford are unbeaten in their last four campaign openers.
Prediction
Ipswich will come into Saturday’s match full of confidence, but unless their back line is solid, they could be going home empty-handed.
Brentford will look to exploit new faces Knudsen and Emmanuel, with Gray undoubtedly up for giving them the runaround.
Still, at the other end of the pitch, Ipswich have more than enough in their armoury to do some damage, and if Murphy, McGoldrick and Sears are firing, it could well be the perfect start for McCarthy’s men.
Prediction: Brentford 1-2 Ipswich Town
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