When the Premier League fixture list was released today, I think most of us were in a collective state of shock! Portman Road will entertain Liverpool on August 18th which will be featured live on TNT as the Saturday morning kick-off. Then, just a few days later, Ipswich will travel to the Etihad to face four-time Premier League winners Manchester City. It is enough to put the fear of God into most of the Town faithful!
Now that I have had time to analyse our very daunting start to our first Premier League campaign in 22 years, I can see how confronting the giants of English football early on might help us! As things stand, Ipswich do not have any players involved in the Euro 2024 event but Liverpool and Manchester City most certainly do! It could just be that we catch both clubs a little cold and I would much prefer to play them at this stage of the season than when they have started to get into overdrive later on.
I am pleased that we begin at home because a packed-out stadium might just give us an edge in what promises to be an extraordinary first match back in the top flight of English football. We already know that every match in this division will be a titanic struggle but we might be able to get a point – or even more on the board, thanks to our home advantage. Whichever way you look at this, it is a very thrilling prospect!
The key to our survival back in the Premier League is Kieran McKenna and his coaching staff. They all needed to stay put because they know the squad and its strengths and weaknesses and the players have faith in what they all preached. I am very excited about the coming season but I would be lying if I suggested that I was not in fear and dread of it too. We ideally want to start with a good set of results but if we are two lost two on the bounce for the first time under manager Kieran McKenna, then we must perform well and come close. The last thing we need is a repeat of when Liverpool played us the last time. We lost 0-5, and it culminated in our sad relegation in 2001-02.
