In the later of two pre-season friendlies on the same day, Ipswich Town will square off against Admira Wacker in Austria on Saturday.
The Tractor Boys are also taking on Spartak Trnava at the weekend with Kieran McKenna set to split the squad, as they ramp up preparations ahead of the Championship season.
Match preview
Admira Wacker headed into this pre-season campaign on the back of a disappointing season in Austria's second tier, following their relegation from the Austrian Bundesliga in the previous term.
In their bid to make an immediate return to the top flight, the Admiraner only managed a 10th-placed finish, having picked up just 36 points from their 30 games, while only steering clear of relegation thanks to a strong end to the term in which they won three of their last five fixtures between early May and the final day in early June.
On the back of that tough campaign, Admira Wacker returned to action this month with the aim of improving in the upcoming term and putting together a sustained bid to climb back to the Bundesliga, and they began with a friendly against Austrian giants LASK Linz, eventually coming out on the wrong end of a 5-2 beating.
It did not take them long to score a first victory of pre-season, as Tommy Wright's men quickly beat Marchfeld 2-0, before dishing out a 4-0 beating to Drassburg last Friday in Maria Enzersdorf.
Now on the back of a 6-0 defeat away at Regionalliga outfit Donaufeld, the Admiraner will be keen to bounce back on Saturday against the visiting English side in their final friendly before the commencement of competitive football next week against ASK Klagenfurt in the Austrian Cup first round.
Their visitors, meanwhile, are aiming to cap off their training camp in Austria in style with two fixtures on Saturday, as they build towards their return to the Championship.
Under the management of Kieran McKenna, the Tractor Boys enjoyed a memorable campaign in their fourth consecutive season in England's third tier, sealing a second-placed finish with 98 points from their 46 games, having boasted the league's best attacking and defensive records, as they pipped Sheffield Wednesday into the top two by winning 13 of their last 15 outings and drawing the other two.
After confirming their return to England's second tier, the Suffolk outfit reconvened for pre-season and began with a short friendly away at Felixstowe & Walton United, in which they quickly kicked into gear and put up a dominant display, eventually leaving with a 6-0 victory as Freddie Ladapo hit a brace and Sone Aluko, Kyle Edwards, Kayden Jackson and Panutche Camara all added their names to the scoresheet.
The Tractor Boys then met Maidenhead United in a tougher test, in which McKenna again rotated his squad at half time, and they would come out as 2-1 winners, as Marcus Harness opened the scoring and Ladapo restored his side's lead after Shawn McCoulsky's leveller.
Now taking a step-up in intensity once again in their pre-season campaign, before returning home for meetings with Preston North End, Cambridge United, Stevenage and Luton Town, ahead of the commencement of the Championship campaign in early August, Ipswich will be keen to build a degree of momentum with a pair of victories at the weekend.
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Team News
Admira Wacker have made rotations to their squad throughout pre-season, but with the cup and league campaigns looming, they should deploy a full-strength starting XI on Saturday.
Patrick Schmidt and Filip Ristanic will both hope to feature up front, after each hitting five goals last term.
Wilhelm Vorsager and Martin Rasner were mainstays in the midfield throughout last term and should again play key roles, while Patrick Puchegger and Nicolas Keckeisen will likely partner up in the middle of the defence.
With Ipswich Town playing two fixtures in the same day, we are yet to see how Kieran McKenna will line up his two teams, but the Tractor Boys boss may follow the same split he did in the friendly against Maidenhead, with summer signing Jack Taylor likely to start in midfield against Admira Wacker.
He may again join Massimo Luongo in midfield, and while returning forward George Hirst, who recently signed permanently after a loan spell from Leicester City last season, will not feature, there is still plenty of attacking firepower even with the squad split, with Freddie Ladapo set to lead the line with support from the likes of Kyle Edwards, Marcus Harness and Sone Aluko.
At the other end of the pitch, Janoi Donacien, Luke Woolfenden, George Edmundson and Leif Davis could line up in a back four in front of first-choice stopper Christian Walton.
Admira Wacker possible starting lineup:
Haas; Scholler, Puchegger, Keckeisen, Puczka; Malicsek, Vorsager, Rasner; Davies, Schmidt, Ristanic
Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Walton; Donacien, Woolfenden, Edmundson, Davis; Luongo, Taylor; Edwards, Harness, Aluko; Ladapo
We say: Admira Wacker 2-3 Ipswich Town
We would not be surprised to see goals at both ends of the pitch in Saturday's friendly in Austria, and even with the squad split across two fixtures, the Tractor Boys should fancy themselves to cause the hosts plenty of problems and come out on top as their Championship preparations ramp up.
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