Ipswich Town will look to continue their perfect start to the Championship season on Saturday, when they welcome Leeds United to Portman Road in the fourth round of league fixtures this term.

The hosts have won all three of their second-tier outings, following their promotion from League One last time around, while their visitors are still searching for a first league victory of the campaign after their relegation from the Premier League.

Match preview

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After winning promotion from League One under the management of Kieran McKenna last season, Ipswich have enjoyed a dream start to life back in England's second tier, currently boasting a perfect record at the top of the division.

The Tractor Boys marked their return to the Championship with a tough trip to Sunderland and left with all three points as Nathan Broadhead opened the scoring on the stroke of half time and George Hirst added a second early in the second period, before they stood strong to see out the victory after Dan Neil pulled one back for their hosts late on.

After then seeing off Bristol Rovers in the first round of the EFL Cup, McKenna's men then entertained Stoke City in their first home league game of the campaign and made it back-to-back Championship triumphs and three straight wins in all competitions, as Luke Woolfenden and Kayden Jackson found the net in a 2-0 victory, before they most recently travelled to take on Queens Park Rangers last weekend.

Heading in with plenty of confidence, the Tractor Boys did find themselves under pressure for large portions of that outing, but it was them who were able to find the opening goal through Conor Chaplin 15 minutes from time, and they would see out a second straight clean sheet to take their tally to nine points.

With momentum certainly on their side following the promotion and their start, having now gone 22 league matches unbeaten across the second and third tiers, Ipswich will look to maintain their perfect record and further strengthen their position in the Championship's leading pack.

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They meet a Leeds side who have experienced a much tougher start to the campaign than their hosts, having also returned to the Championship this year after their relegation from the Premier League last time around.

The Yorkshire outfit turned to Daniel Farke to lead their bid for an immediate promotion back to the top flight, and after a summer largely defined by departures throughout the squad, they began by welcoming Cardiff City to Elland Road and were only able to snatch a point from a 2-2 draw thanks to Crysencio Summerville's injury-time leveller, after the visitors had gone 2-0 up in the first half and Liam Cooper pulled one back in the 49th minute.

Aiming to build on that with a first league triumph, after coming from behind to get past Shrewsbury Town in the EFL Cup, the Whites travelled to St Andrews but were on the wrong end of a late goal on that occasion, as the game looked set to end goalless until the hosts won a penalty which Lukas Jutkiewicz converted to snatch all three points.

Continuing the search for a first three-point haul of the campaign, Farke's men most recently played host to West Bromwich Albion last Friday, and after falling behind early in the second half following Brandon Thomas-Asante's goal, they were able to draw level through Luke Ayling's headed finish but could not find a winner in the final 18 minutes, instead having to settle for a share of the spoils.

Now with just two points on the board from their opening three outings, Leeds will be desperate to put the tough start behind them and lift the mood in the camp with a win on their travels this weekend, although they certainly face a tough test against an Ipswich team full of confidence.

Team News

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Kieran McKenna has deployed the same starting XI in each of Ipswich's first three Championship outings this season, and following back-to-back wins and clean sheets, he has little reason to make many changes at Portman Road, with the Tractor Boys bound to set up similarly in their 4-2-3-1 shape.

The line will be led by George Hirst, who made a loan move from Leicester City permanent over the summer, with Nathan Broadhead and Wes Burns looking to cause problems on the wings, while Conor Chaplin will also keep his spot in the attack, having opened his account for the season against QPR last week after helping them earn automatic promotion with 26 League One goals last term.

Likewise, Massimo Luongo and captain Sam Morsy are bound to again start the game in midfield, while there is competition in defence with Harry Clarke and new signing Brandon Williams fighting to break into the back four with Janoi Donacien, Luke Woolfenden, Cameron Burgess and former Leeds United man Leif Davis having been preferred so far this term, while Vaclav Hladky will continue to start in net in place of the injured Christian Walton.

Daniel Farke is still dealing with a somewhat reduced Leeds United squad compared to the one which finished last season, with the likes of Rodrigo, Jack Harrison, Brenden Aaronson, Tyler Adams, Marc Roca, Rasmus Kristensen, Max Wober and Robin Koch having departed during the summer transfer window, while Stuart Dallas, Patrick Bamford, Luis Sinisterra and centre-back and captain Liam Cooper are sidelined by injuries.

The Whites have started to make additions, though, with Tottenham Hotspur loanee Joe Rodon set to join Pascal Struijk in the middle of a back four, while Sam Byram and Luke Ayling should complete the back four.

Fellow summer arrival Ethan Ampadu will likely join 17-year-old Archie Gray in the middle, while Willy Gnonto has returned to contention in attack and could come back in from the start after his time out of the squad, with Georginio Rutter expected to lead the line while Joe Gelhardt and Daniel James could also keep their places in a supporting trio in their 4-2-3-1 shape.

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Hladky; Donacien, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Luongo; Burns, Chaplin, Broadhead; Hirst

Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Meslier; Ayling, Struijk, Rodon, Byram; Ampadu, Gray; Gnonto, Gelhardt, James; Rutter

We say: Ipswich Town 2-1 Leeds United

It is hard to look past this Ipswich Town side at present, particularly on home turf, given the momentum they hold under Kieran McKenna, and while Leeds do still possess plenty of quality and will travel desperate for a result, we back the Tractor Boys to make it four wins on the bounce on their return to the Championship.


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Written by
Sam Varley

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