Football Previews
Ipswich Town vs Liverpool
Competition – Barclays Premier League
Stadium: Portman Road
Date: 17th August 2024
Kick-off time – 12:30 GMT
Ipswich will begin their Premier League journey with a game against Liverpool this Saturday.
After a 22-year absence from the English top flight, the hosts return to the Premier League and will be looking to make this season as memorable as their last two. Ipswich has enjoyed back-to-back promotions in their last two seasons so fans will be expecting another successful season. Their goal this time is to remain in the top flight despite the heavy competition at this level.
The Tractor Boys have been busy during the off-season in many ways, upgrading Portman Road to Premier League standard, whilst on the pitch they’ve managed to persuade highly touted manager Kieran McKenna to stay and spent over £50m to improve their squad.
They will be delighted to begin their campaign in front of their home crowd who have had plenty to celebrate in recent times after seeing their side lose just one of their last 39 home league matches (W28, D10). They also have a habit of avoiding defeat in their season opener as you would have to go back eleven seasons to find the last time Ipswich lost on the opening day of a league campaign (W6, D4).
However, the hosts have not met an opponent like Liverpool in those eleven years. The Reds are one of the toughest sides Kieran McKenna’s side could ever face in the top flight and they have a top three finish from last season as proof.
However, the Reds are not the team they were last season. If nothing else, they have a new manager in the dugout having replaced their most successful manager in the Premier League era, Jürgen Klopp, with Arne Slot over the summer.
The Dutchman has promised to build on Klopp’s legacy but a lack of summer signings has many Reds fans wondering what he has in store. However, Liverpool are also used to hitting the ground running, last tasting defeat on the opening day 12 seasons ago (W8, D3). If that isn’t inspiring enough, then their record against newly-promoted clubs make for equally good reading as they are currently on an eight-game unbeaten run against such teams (W7, D1).
Other fixtures taking place this week in the Premier League Fixtures:
| April 1, 2025 | ||
| Arsenal | 18:45 | Fulham |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 18:45 | West Ham United |
| Nottingham Forest | 19:00 | Manchester United |
| April 2, 2025 | ||
| AFC Bournemouth | 18:45 | Ipswich Town |
| Brighton & Hov… | 18:45 | Aston Villa |
| Manchester City | 18:45 | Leicester City |
| Newcastle United | 18:45 | Brentford |
| Southampton | 18:45 | Crystal Palace |
| Liverpool | 19:00 | Everton |
| April 3, 2025 | ||
| Chelsea | 19:00 | Tottenham Hotspur |
| April 5, 2025 | ||
| Everton | 11:30 | Arsenal |
| West Ham United | 14:00 | AFC Bournemouth |
| Ipswich Town | 14:00 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
| Crystal Palace | 14:00 | Brighton & Hov… |
| Aston Villa | 16:30 | Nottingham Forest |
| April 6, 2025 | ||
| Brentford | 13:00 | Chelsea |
| Fulham | 13:00 | Liverpool |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 13:00 | Southampton |
| Manchester United | 15:30 | Manchester City |
| April 7, 2025 | ||
| Leicester City | 19:00 | Newcastle United |
Premier League Table
| # | Team | MP | W | D | L | F | A | G | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 29 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 69 | 27 | +42 | 70 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 29 | 16 | 10 | 3 | 53 | 24 | +29 | 58 |
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 29 | 16 | 6 | 7 | 49 | 35 | +14 | 54 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 29 | 14 | 7 | 8 | 53 | 37 | +16 | 49 |
| 5 | Manchester City | 29 | 14 | 6 | 9 | 55 | 40 | +15 | 48 |
| 6 | Newcastle United | 28 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 47 | 38 | +9 | 47 |
| 7 | Brighton & Hov… | 29 | 12 | 11 | 6 | 48 | 42 | +6 | 47 |
| 8 | Fulham | 29 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 43 | 38 | +5 | 45 |
| 9 | Aston Villa | 29 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 41 | 45 | -4 | 45 |
| 10 | AFC Bournemouth | 29 | 12 | 8 | 9 | 48 | 36 | +12 | 44 |
| 11 | Brentford | 29 | 12 | 5 | 12 | 50 | 45 | +5 | 41 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 28 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 36 | 33 | +3 | 39 |
| 13 | Manchester United | 29 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 37 | 40 | -3 | 37 |
| 14 | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | 10 | 4 | 15 | 55 | 43 | +12 | 34 |
| 15 | Everton | 29 | 7 | 13 | 9 | 32 | 36 | -4 | 34 |
| 16 | West Ham United | 29 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 33 | 49 | -16 | 34 |
| 17 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 29 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 40 | 58 | -18 | 26 |
| 18 | Ipswich Town | 29 | 3 | 8 | 18 | 28 | 62 | -34 | 17 |
| 19 | Leicester City | 29 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 65 | -40 | 17 |
| 20 | Southampton | 29 | 2 | 3 | 24 | 21 | 70 | -49 | 9 |
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