Ipswich Town will be looking to cause another upset in the EFL Cup when they host Fulham. In the third round, the Tractor Boys triumphed 3-2 over Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Cottagers defeated Norwich City 2-1 to complete the job.
Preview (Ipswich Town vs. Fulham)
In the first two rounds of the 2023–24 EFL Cup, neither Bristol Rovers nor Reading were able to stop the Tractor Boys in their tracks, but the supporters at Portman Road may have been forgiven for abandoning their team to defeat Wolves with just fifteen minutes remaining. On September 26, Hwang Hee-chan and Toti gave Gary O’Neil’s team a two-goal lead. Jack Taylor then completed an incredible comeback.
Their third-round matchup with Norwich was settled without the need for a shootout. In fact, goals from Alex Iwobi and Carlos Vinicius before the interval told the story. With fifteen minutes remaining, Carlos Sainz cut the deficit in half. Marco Silva’s team quickly closed the gap to advance to the round of sixteen for just the third time. The Cottagers have suffered heartbreak in their last two tournament appearances at this stage. They lost 2-0 to Manchester City in 2018–19 and 3-0 to Brentford in 2020–21. However, coming into Wednesday’s match, they had held Brighton & Hove Albion to a commendable 1–1 draw on the South Coast.
Joao Palhinha’s drive overturned an early Evan Ferguson goal to extend Fulham’s winning streak in the Premier League against the Europa League contenders. Nevertheless, the draw ends the visitors’ five-game winning streak on the road. They have lost one and drawn the other. Silva’s team’s chances are not good, but Fulham has defeated Ipswich in each of their past five meetings. Most recently, they defeated their hosts 1-0 in an EFL Cup second-round match.
Team News
Ipswich midfielder Lee Evans is scheduled to serve a one-game punishment in the match on Wednesday after receiving his second caution of the competition in the victory over Wolves, but the 29-year-old just underwent knee surgery and will be off for months. Freddie Ladapo and Axel Tuanzebe both bounced back from knocks to make the bench against Plymouth, despite the fact that neither player saw action due to Elkan Baggott’s back issue. This will undoubtedly reward the group of players who spearheaded the comeback against Wolves.
For their match against Brighton this past weekend, Fulham was forced to play without Vinicius; nonetheless, Silva emphasized that the former Tottenham player was not dealing with a serious injury, raising hopes for a prompt recovery. It’s possible that Adama Traore (thigh) and Kenny Tete (unspecified) will join the squad on Wednesday, but neither Issa Diop (foot) nor Tosin Adarabioyo (groin) will play. Bert Leno should give over the reins at Portman Road to Marek Rodak, even though he made five vital saves at the Amex. Tom Cairney and Sasa Lukic could provide a different midfield presence.
Ipswich Town 2 – 3 Fulham
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