Ipswich Town will be bidding to return to winning ways when they continue their League One campaign at home to Derby County on Friday night.

The home side are currently second in the table, four points behind leaders Plymouth Argyle, while Derby occupy ninth position, boasting 20 points from their opening 12 games of the campaign.

Match preview

Ipswich, who finished 11th in League One last season, have enjoyed a strong start to the 2022-23 campaign, picking up 30 points from their 14 matches, which has left them second in the division.

The Blues are four points behind leaders Plymouth heading into this contest, but they have suffered defeats in their last two games in two separate competitions.

Indeed, Kieran McKenna's side lost 1-0 at home to Lincoln City on Saturday before going down 1-0 at Cambridge United in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday night.

Ipswich are currently preparing for three league fixtures in quick succession, facing Derby, Port Vale and Charlton Athletic before the end of the month, while they will open November with an FA Cup clash against Bracknell Town.

The Tractor Boys have not actually faced Derby since a 1-1 draw in the Championship in February 2019, while they have not managed to overcome their opponents on Friday since a 1-0 success in November 2017.

Derby - relegated from the Championship last season - have found it difficult to show consistency in the third tier of English football this term, winning six, drawing two and losing four of their 12 matches.

A total of 20 points has left them in ninth position in the table, but they are only one point behind sixth-placed Barnsley and have at least one game in hand on the majority of the teams above them.

The Rams have lost three of their last four matches in all competitions, including a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City Under-21s in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday night.

However, Paul Warne's side did manage to record a 3-0 victory over Accrington Stanley in their last league match on Saturday, with Will Osula scoring twice and Tom Barkhuizen also netting late on.

Derby also have another three League One games before the end of the month, facing Exeter City and Bristol Rovers in their two fixtures after this one, before taking on Torquay United in the FA Cup on November 5.

Team News

Ipswich boss McKenna will make wholesale changes from the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Cambridge in the EFL Trophy in Cambridgeshire.

Wesley Burns, George Edmundson and Freddie Ladapo will be among those to return, while Conor Chaplin, who was unused against Tuesday, will also be back in the side.

Cameron Burgess remains a long-term absentee for the home side, but McKenna's side did not pick up any fresh fitness concerns last time out.

Derby, meanwhile, had David McGoldrick and Korey Smith back in their squad for the clash with Accrington, and the duo appeared off the bench in the 3-0 success.

The pair then started against Man City Under-21s on Tuesday evening, putting them in contention to feature in the XI here, but Jason Knight will need to be assessed after taking a blow to his knee in the EFL Trophy clash.

James Collins is still suspended for the Rams, which should mean that Osula continues at centre-forward with support from Lewis Dobbin in the number 10 position.

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Walton; Donacien, Woolfenden, Edmundson; Burns, Evans, Morsy, Davis; Chaplin, Ladapo, Harness

Derby County possible starting lineup:
Wildsmith; Chester, Davies, Cashin; Mendez-Laing, Knight, Sibley, Bird, Barkhuizen; Dobbin; Osula

We say: Ipswich Town 1-1 Derby County

There is not a huge difference in the quality of these two sides, and we are expecting a close match on Friday night. Ipswich will be determined to close the gap on leaders Plymouth, but Derby should be good enough to secure a share of the spoils in this game.

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