Championship, Wednesday, 10.04.2024
In the Championship, the second English league, a promoted team is causing a sensation: Ipswich Town have never finished lower than 6th in the 2023/24 season and have always been in the top 2 with the exception of ten matchdays.
The “Tractor Boys” are therefore dreaming of making it through. With relegated Leicester City and Leeds United, Ipswich have top-class competition in the battle for the two direct tickets to the Premier League.
However, the “Blues” are as good as guaranteed a place in the play-offs. At the weekend, the league newcomers had to relinquish the lead in the table after a 1-0 defeat at Norwich City.
But coach Kieran McKenna’s men can make amends at home to Watford on Wednesday. I play the bet “Victory Ipswich & Over 1.5 goals” at odds of 1.66 with provider Betway on the Ipswich Watford bet
Ipswich are in second place after 41 games, one point behind Leicester City and one point ahead of Leeds United. However, the leaders still have a catch-up game up their sleeve.
Watford, on the other hand, find themselves in the gray midfield (14th place). The bookmakers, who have the best sports betting apps on offer, have also formed a clear opinion on the Ipswich Watford prediction.
The odds for a home win are just shy of 1.50. On the other hand, you will get seven times your stake back for a three-goal win for the visitors.
The spectators can be happy. Ipswich have scored at least three goals in their last eight home games. The odds at Bwin for the bet “Over 2.5 goals” are just 1.57.
New and existing customers should not miss out on the current Bwin voucher before placing a bet with the provider
In the 1980s, for example, Ipswich Town won the UEFA Cup. However, the “Tractor Boys” were relegated from the Premier League in 2002 and spent 17 years in League 2 and a further four years in League 3.
Under Kieran McKenna, a former Manchester United assistant coach, the club returned to the second division in 2023 and immediately caused a stir one division higher.
The Blues already had the best offense in League One last year. And 84 goals after 41 match days is also the clear record in the Championship.
The men from the rural east coast are also extremely strong at home. Their record from 20 home games this season stands at 15 wins, four draws and just one defeat, with 56:31 goals scored
However, the goal tally at home also highlights a weakness. Only four teams in the top half of the table (top 12) have conceded more goals than ITFC (52).
In the League Cup, for example, Ipswich knocked first division side Wolverhampton out of the competition. Instead, they suffered a surprising 2-1 defeat at home to sixth division side Maidstone in the FA Cup.
At the weekend, coach McKenna’s men suffered their sixth defeat in the league with a 1-0 loss at Norwich. The visitors had more possession (62%), but simply did not have their best day.
So far, the newly promoted team has not let such setbacks get them down. The cushion to the first non-play-off place is a reassuring 24 points
Watford have remained in the Premier League for five seasons in a row since 2015. And after relegation in 2019/20, the club also achieved immediate promotion.
However, as a league newcomer, the club had to return to the Championship in the 2021/22 season. Last year in the second division was a huge disappointment.
Instead of fighting for a direct return to the top flight, the Yellow Army only finished 11th at the end of the season, missing out on the play-off places by six points.
Last summer, former Bundesliga professional Valerien Ismael was hired as the new head coach. But under the Frenchman, who had previously led second-division side Barnsley to the promotion play-offs, there was no success
The coach was sacked again at the beginning of March. Only eleven of the 37 Championship games under Ismael, who was Watford’s 19th full-time manager in eleven years, were won (12U, 14N).
This left the Hornets in no man’s land. Interim coach Tom Cleverley, previously in charge of the club’s U18s, has now been in charge of the Yellows for four games.
And the new man got off to a good start with a 1-0 win at Birmingham. The last three matches against Leeds, West Brom and Preston North End have all ended in draws.
Watford have picked up 28 of their 63 points this season away from home. This puts the Hornets in 8th place in the away table, but they have only managed three wins in 18 games in the second half of the season
This pairing has only been played 49 times in English soccer. The Hornets lead the comparison by the narrowest of margins with 19 wins to 18 defeats. In Ipswich, however, the “Tractor Boys” have the edge (10S, 7U, 7N).
In this season’s first leg, the two clubs met for the first time in eight years in the league. Watford took the lead after just ten minutes
In the end, however, the newly promoted side took home all three points with a 2-1 win. In 8 of the last 10 matches between these two teams, more goals have been scored in the second half.
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Conclusion: Watford’s record under Tom Cleverley is impressive. The Hornets are still unbeaten under the interim coach and have taken a point at home from top three club Leeds United, for example.
The “Yellow Army” are also doing well in the away table. But Ipswich are of a different caliber. The “Tractor Boys” have won 15 of their 20 home games and only conceded one home defeat.
That defeat was 3:4 against Leeds at the end of August. The newly promoted side have been unbeaten in 18 home games. They have won all of their last five home games with an overall goal difference of 19:8.
The home side will also be looking to make amends for their defeat at Norwich. On the other hand, only three teams have scored fewer points than Watford in the second half of the season
My Ipswich Watford betting tip is: Win Ipswich & Over 1.5 goals!
