Boss Kieran McKenna says Tuesday’s opponents Watford are a strong side in strong form, particularly at home, ahead of the Blues’ visit to Vicarage Road.

The Blues will go top if they win with leaders Leicester not in action until Wednesday when they host Millwall. Third-placed Leeds are at managerless Sunderland on Tuesday.

Watford, who have announced that they are replacing sporting director Cristiano Giaretta their former technical director Gian Luca Nani, are currently 10th in the Championship having finished one place lower last season, their first year back in the second tier following relegation from the Premier League.

After making a slow start in which they won only one of their first five league games, a 4-0 defeat of QPR on the opening day, they have hit form latterly and have now lost only once in their last 10, winning five.

At home, they have the sixth best record in the division having won five, drawn four and lost two, to Blackburn, 1-0, and Middlesbrough, 3-2, back in August and September respectively. They are currently unbeaten in five at Vicarage Road since the defeat to Rovers.

On Saturday, they drew 1-1 at Southampton, claiming a point courtesy of a 90th-minute Rhys Healey goal.

“A very decent side, another team not that long out of the Premier League with some of the same squad there and a really difficult place to go,” McKenna said.

“But another one to enjoy. I’ve said it all along, we have to enjoy the journey, coming to a place like this, Southampton away, going to a places like that and winning games, we can’t take that for granted.

“It’s on to the next one, but let’s just enjoy each stage point along the way and the next one is another really good team, we’ll freshen up and we’ll try and go and deliver another performance.”

Watford’s impressive home results is matched by their stats during those performances.

“Not just in terms of the points they’ve accumulated but in the underlying numbers,” McKenna said, speaking to TownTV.

“They’ve lost one game in their last 10 and that was away at Leicester. They’re in really strong form and they’re a really strong team.

“It’s going to be a strong challenge for us, but Middlesbrough was, the game on Saturday will be and the games after that will be.

“So we’ll give them the absolute respect they deserve and we know we’re going to have to be physically and mentally at a really, really high level on Tuesday night but that’s what we’re going to try and strive to achieve.”.

With the game, which is being shown live on Sky Sports Arena, the second of three in eight days with local rivals Norwich City visiting Portman Road on Saturday, McKenna was asked whether he would utilise his squad, which has Massimo Luongo and Brandon Williams returning after suspension.

“We’ll have a look at it on Monday,” he said, speaking after the win at Boro. “This is the second time we’ve been away from home on the Saturday and then away from home on the Tuesday night, which isn’t easy, and we’re an early kick-off on the Saturday as well.

“We’ll have a look at it and we’ve got a healthy squad that is itching to play, so whichever team we pick will be raring to go against another good team.”

With games coming thick and fast, the club’s strength in depth is going to be important both in terms of changes to the starting line-up and players coming off the bench.

“The squad’s going to be really important, you saw that on Saturday,” he said. “Sometimes that might mean the rotation of the starting XI and sometimes that might mean the impact of the substitutes is even more important.

“Saturday, we got another goal from the substitutes’ bench, our numbers for that was terrific and the impact of all the subs was really good. From those who came on first, Omari [Hutchinson] and even Dom Ball’s impact can’t be understated.

“He came on late in the game, probably had six things to do and did them all to near perfection - a big tackle, won a free-kick, completed a good pass, stopped a counter-attack. Being ready for those interventions is massive.

“It’s a month when we won’t start the same XI in every game across the month, but on top of that then it’s having subs really dialled in and ready to come on and impact the game and whatever the team requires, and that’s going to be massive for us.”

He added: “We’ve got a fully engaged group here, we’ve got a really, really good group, all fully buying into everything, all enjoying the journey together and all, rightfully so, taking pride whenever we get a good result and also when it hasn’t gone our way, sticking together and ready for the next one.”

Skipper Sam Morsy is on nine bookings with a 10th leading to a two-match ban. Asked after Saturday’s game, in which the Egyptian international picked up his ninth yellow card, whether that might give him a selection issue at Watford, McKenna said: “I’ve not thought about it much. It’s happened 10 minutes ago.

“My main thought going into Tuesday night is that it’s a really, really tough game, we’ve got to go and try and perform and do that as well as we possibly can, that’s what my overriding feeling is going to be going into Tuesday. That aspect will probably go into that category as well.”

McKenna says there were one or two players with minor niggles and issues ahead of training today but didn't seem overly concerned regarding anyone's availability.

Vaclav Hladky will start in goal with Leif Davis set to continue at left-back. There could be a change on the right with Williams probably returning for Harry Clarke having served his one-game suspension.

Similarly, Axel Tuanzebe could come back into the side at the right of the centre of the defence for Luke Woolfenden with Cameron Burgess continuing on the left.

In midfield, it seems likely that Morsy will start despite his suspension tightrope with Luongo returning alongside him following his one-match ban.

George Hirst again seems likely to start as the number nine but McKenna could rest one or two of those in the three behind the striker.

Marcus Harness could come in for Nathan Broadhead, while Omari Hutchinson or Kayden Jackson could take over from Wes Burns with eight-goal top scorer Conor Chaplin probably continuing in the middle.

Watford manager Valérien Ismaël says he’s not shocked that the Blues are enjoying such an impressive season following their promotion from League One.

“Every game is a big challenge - each time you’re coming up against a strong team with a way to play,” he told his club’s website.

“Especially this season the Championship has evolved a lot - it’s very high quality. You saw in the last game [the draw with the Saints] there was a lot of high levels of play and tactics. It makes the league very attractive, and it will be the same tomorrow.

“I’m not surprised at how well Ipswich have done so far this season. This is what happens when you bring consistency to a club, pick the right players and create something within the team.

“With the success of promotion they’ve established themselves as a strong side, and when you keep winning it continually increases your belief in your strengths.”

Regarding his own team’s progress in the opening months of the campaign, he added: “From the beginning the message was that the club wanted stability and wanted to build something together. From day one in pre-season the confirmation of that belief was there.

“The results weren’t there at the start, but there were some really good performances and we became strong because of that tough period.

“I think we are the perfect example that when you give time and work with consistency, calmness and a real focus, then you see a clear evolution.

“I’m not surprised about our improvement. We have become more stable in our performances, which gives us more chances to win games. We are ready to compete at all levels now - technically, physically, tactically and mentally.

“Now we have to take the next step - if we want the reward we have to be more ruthless with the first chance we get.

“Every three days we have to go again with the same desire and level of performance in order to compete and close the gap between us and the top of the league.”

Regarding injuries, he added: “Jake Livermore was back in training yesterday [having missed the Southampton game with a knee strain], so after today’s session we will see if he is ready to go or if we need to wait a little bit longer. Otherwise, it’s only Jeremy Ngakia that won’t be available for the match.

“We are in a strong position at the moment and we’re able to rotate the team or keep things the same. The games dictate our substitutions and we have the advantage where we are strong physically and we know we have a good bench.”

Historically, the sides are closely matched with the Blues having won 27 games (24 in the league) and Watford 26 (25 in the league), while 17 (17) have ended in draws.

The teams last met at Vicarage Road in March 2015 when Richard Chaplow netted a dramatic winner in the fifth minute of injury time as Town won 1-0 to complete a double over the Hertfordshire side.

The Hornets had started the day leading the Championship and were ultimately promoted in second, while the result saw the Blues climb back into the play-off places.

In the previous November at Portman Road, Tommy Smith smashed home his second goal of the season from close range seven minutes from time as the Blues won 1-0 to climb to fourth in the Championship.

The central defender was first to a loose ball after a Kevin Bru shot had been blocked following a well-worked free-kick.

In the second half, then-Town loanee Jonny Williams was forced off with a groin injury following a wild Joel Ekstrand lunge which might well have led to a red card rather than the yellow the Swedish defender was shown.

Town’s head of goalkeeping Rene Gilmartin had two spells with the Hornets, between 2010 and 2012 and from 2014 until 2017, but made only seven senior appearances, all in his first stint.

Blues midfielder Dominic Ball was a youth player at Watford before joining Tottenham’s academy in 2011.

CEO Mark Ashton was chief executive with the Hornets from June 2004 until December 2008.

Watford midfielder Livermore was on loan with the Blues from Spurs from September 2010 until January 2011, making eight starts and four sub appearances under Roy Keane’s management.

Tuesday’s referee is David Coote, who has shown 29 yellow cards and one yellow in seven games so far this season, five of those in the Premier League.

The Nottinghamshire-based official’s last Town match was the 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough on the final day of the 2017/18 season in which he yellow-carded Cole Skuse, Martyn Waghorn, Freddie Sears and one Teessider.

He was also in the middle for the 1-1 draw with Norwich City at Carrow Road in February the same year in which he booked Callum Connolly, Jordan Spence, Joe Garner, Skuse and Waghorn, as well as two Canaries.

Coote also refereed the 1-0 defeat at Wolves in December 2017 in which he booked Adam Webster, Connolly and Waghorn and one home player.

Prior to that he was the man in the middle for the previous month's 2-2 draw at Hull City, booking five Blues - Jonas Knudsen, Webster, Connolly, Garner and Grant Ward - as well as three home players. He also awarded the Blues a penalty but David McGoldrick’s spot-kick was saved.

Before that he refereed the 1-0 home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in April last year in which he booked only Skuse.

He also took charge of the December 2016 2-1 victory over Bristol City at Portman Road, yellow-carding Brett Pitman, Tom Lawrence and two of the visitors.

Coote was also the man in the middle for the Portman Road derby four months prior to that which ended 1-1. He booked no home players and one Canary as well as ruling out what replays showed to be Jonathan Douglas’s perfectly good goal, his linesman having wrongly flagged for offside.

He refereed the 2-2 FA Cup draw at home to Portsmouth in January 2016, in which he cautioned Skuse and one visiting player, and the 0-0 home draw with Cardiff in October 2015 in which he yellow-carded eight players, Tommy Smith, Skuse and Kevin Bru as well as five Bluebirds.

Coote officiated in the 2-2 draw with Brentford on the opening day of 2015/16 when he booked only Bees' midfielder Jota.

Earlier, he refereed the 3-1 defeat at Cardiff in October 2014, in which he yellow-carded Tyrone Mings and two home players, the 2-1 defeat at Reading on the opening day of the 2013/14 season and the 3-1 home loss to Wigan later that campaign.

During the season prior to that he took control of Town’s 2-1 defeat away against the Tigers which turned out to be Paul Jewell’s penultimate game in charge of the Blues and the 3-0 home victory over Millwall.

Squad from: Hladky, Walton, Williams, Clarke, Donacien, Davis, Woolfenden, Burgess, Edmundson, Baggott, Tuanzebe, Morsy, Luongo, Taylor, Ball, Humphreys, Burns, Jackson, Chaplin, Broadhead, Harness, Aluko, Hutchinson, Hirst, Ladapo, Jackson, Scarlett.

Photo: TWTD

IpswichT62OldBoy added 19:27 - Dec 11 I keep banging on about current form but.......as of now it is king. Anyone maintaining 2points a game or better will, at worst, maintain their position. We are 3 in that current form table, above Watford, below Leeds and Soton.
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Help added 20:06 - Dec 11 29 yellows and one red Phil
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pennblue added 21:02 - Dec 11 Watford have got a strong central midfield pairing, with livermore behind. Will be a tactical game i suspect
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Michael101 added 13:45 - Dec 12 In the last few years Watford have had m more managers than we have had players
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