Chelsea finish 2024 by making their first trip to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town since 2002 in the Premier League on Monday.
Neither side are making the sort of finish to the year they were hoping for, and both desperately need a win before the new year.
Match preview
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After such a promising start that had Chelsea up near the top as unlikely title contenders, their campaign has abruptly hit a brick wall during the festive period.
Nine wins in a row across all competitions since the November international break have suddenly been followed by two games without one.
Enzo Maresca's side were frustrated away to Everton before Christmas, and were then stunned at home by Fulham on Boxing Day, conceding in the 95th minute to lose 2-1.
That was Chelsea's first home defeat to Fulham in 20 meetings, dating back to 1979, and only the third time they have lost to the Cottagers in 35 Premier League encounters.
Leading 1-0 after 82 minutes also meant it was the first time they have lost a game after leading so late since 1999, when they lost against Arsenal despite leading with seven minutes to play.
That has seen the Blues fall seven points behind leaders Liverpool, who took advantage of their slip by beating Leicester City, while London rivals Arsenal also leapfrogged them courtesy of a win over their next opponents Ipswich.
While Chelsea failed to win any of the five Premier League meetings with Ipswich at Portman Road during the early 90s and 2000s, other statistics should give them confidence of finding a first win here.
This is the third year running Chelsea will end a calendar year against a newly-promoted outfit, winning the previous two against Bournemouth and Luton Town.
Not only that, you need to go back to 2011 to find the last time Chelsea ended a year with a defeat, winning eight and drawing four since.
Maresca's men have also been excellent on the road, with Liverpool the only team they have lost to away from home this season.
The last meeting between these two came in the FA Cup 14 years ago, and Chelsea ran out resounding 7-0 winners, so Kieran McKenna will be praying any similar sort of thrashing does not occur here.
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Ipswich enter the fixture in dismal form though, having lost five of their last six matches, leaving them rooted in the bottom three, where they will stay heading into 2025.
A 1-0 loss at Emirates against a sub-par Arsenal saw Ipswich flatter to deceive again, managing just three shots throughout the 90 minutes, none of which were on target.
Their tally of 12 points from 18 games is no surprise when you consider that Ipswich are still yet to win at home this season after nine matches, taking just four points from those.
Only four teams in Premier League history have failed to win any of their first 10 home games in a campaign, and three of them were relegated.
The Tractor Boys' last outing here was the most concerning too, as they were thumped 4-0 by Newcastle United, and the fixtures do not get any easier, with eight of their next league opponents all being sides chasing either the title or the top four - Southampton are the only outlier.
Team News
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McKenna switched to a back five for just the second time this season, but to little effect as they lost at Arsenal on Friday, so the Ipswich boss could revert back to their usual 4-2-3-1 shape.
That may see Ben Johnson drop out in place of either Conor Chaplin or Wes Burns, while Sam Morsy should also return after serving a suspension against Arsenal.
Massimo Luongo missed the game through illness and remains a doubt ahead of this one, while Chiedozie Ogbene and George Hirst remain sidelined with more serious setbacks.
No Conference League fixtures until February may see Maresca utilise some of his European stars in the Premier League, especially with such a quick turnaround from Boxing Day.
Christopher Nkunku, Joao Felix and Marc Guiu have been among the best performers on the continent, along with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, but he is currently a doubt with a knock.
Wesley Fofana, Benoit Badiashile and Reece James all remain sidelined in defence, and Romeo Lavia is 50/50 after returning to training in the last week, while Mykhaylo Mudryk remains suspended following his drugs row.
Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Muric; O'Shea, Greaves, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Cajuste; Chaplin, Hutchinson, Szmodics; Delap
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Sanchez; Gusto, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Enzo, Caicedo; Madueke, Palmer, Joao Felix; Nkunku
We say: Ipswich Town 0-3 Chelsea
Chelsea may have suffered a blip at home to Fulham on Boxing Day, but this is a very favourable fixture for them to get back on track, and keep the pressure on Liverpool at the top.
Ipswich's shortcomings are being brutally exposed, and questions are now starting to be asked about whether they are good enough to compete at this level, and another humbling home defeat in just over a week to finish 2024 will do little to suggest otherwise.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
