Ipswich vs Sunderland prediction: ENGLAND: Championship betting tips on match 2024-01-12 17:30.
Ipswich Town enjoyed a break from their intense promotion push by seeing off a ten-man AFC Wimbledon 3-1 in the FA Cup last weekend. That should have boosted the damaged morale of the Tractor Boys, who remain in second place but are still winless from their past five Championship matches (D4, L1). Subsequently, they have lost ground on Leicester at the top, whilst also allowing the chasing pack to close the gap to three points ahead of the round.
While only Leicester (54) had scored more Championship goals at the end of the last round than Ipswich’s 48, toothless displays are a key factor behind their more recent struggles. The hosts have scored just one goal across their last four league matches, which doesn’t bode well when also considering they failed to score more than a single goal in any of their last three home H2Hs against upcoming opponents Sunderland (D2, L1).
It was an FA Cup weekend to forget for Sunderland who suffered a painful 3-0 home defeat to rivals Newcastle. Eager to forget about that, they’ll most likely welcome a return to Championship action given they are undefeated in their last three league games (W2, D1), which has helped them maintain a spot in the top six, but with a lead of just a point ahead of fellow play-off rivals coming into the round, they’re certainly under pressure.
The Black Cats should be buoyed by the hosts’ attacking issues given their own strong defensive showings of late. They conceded just one solitary Championship goal across their three-game unbeaten run, while their hosts of the day have managed to net more than once in just one of their last six league road trips. They’d perhaps like to have a better record to show from that streak (W1, D3, L2), placing the spotlight on an attack that netted just three combined goals across the same period.
Players to watch: Nathan Broadhead, who made 27 appearances for Sunderland during the 2021/22 season, is Ipswich’s joint leading Championship scorer (G8). Fellow winger Jack Clarke was a teammate of his at the Black Cats, and he scored each of his side’s last two away goals beyond the 70th minute.
Hot stat: Ahead of this round, Championship games involving Ipswich produced the most first half goals on average (1.69).