Town boss Mick McCarthy has decisions to make throughout his team ahead of Saturday’s away game against second-placed AFC Bournemouth. McCarthy has to choose whether to continue with Bartosz Bialkowski in goal or to bring back the fit-again Dean Gerken, while he has plenty of options in midfield and a dilemma in his defence.
Gerken has missed the last three games with a groin injury during which time Bialkowski has recorded two clean sheets in a trio of victories.
Despite being a big fan of the former Colchester man, the Blues boss may ultimately choose to stick with the 27-year-old Pole who has done little wrong during his time in the side.
There are also options in defence with full-back Jonny Parr now over his groin problem. However, McCarthy will probably continue with his backline of Tyrone Mings at left-back, skipper Luke Chambers on the right and Christophe Berra and Tommy Smith at the centre of the defence.
The Town manager further decisions to make in midfield with Luke Hyam back from a one-match ban and Cole Skuse after a groin injury with Jay Tabb and Kevin Bru impressing in their absence.
The only regular first-teamer unavailable is Jonny Williams, who suffered a groin injury in the 1-0 victory over Watford prior to the international break and is out until mid-December when he may well be recalled by parent club Crystal Palace.
McCarthy may decide to return Skuse and Hyam to their usual roles as the deeper pair in the central three, while Bru could operate in the more advanced role as he did at Derby earlier in the season. Teddy Bishop is an alternative option.
Up front, Stephen Hunt was amongst Town’s top performers in the last three games and is likely to keep his place alongside fellow Irish internationals David McGoldrick and Daryl Murphy.
If the Town manager decides to switch to 4-4-2 then Hunt would probably start on the left of midfield with Skuse and Hyam in the middle and Paul Anderson perhaps coming back into the side on the right.
Having been impressed with the Cherries last season, McCarthy says they’ve pushed on during this campaign: "They’re a better team this year, probably because of their experience in the Championship last year.
"They’ve signed good players. I get the ‘homely little Bournemouth’ bit but they’ve spent a few quid, they’ve got players on good wages and they’ve got good pros down there.
"I think Eddie Howe’s done a great job and continues to do a really top job. I thought we had two really hard games against them last year, 1-1 down there and 2-2 here.
"Both of us just missed out on the play-offs and both of us are threatening again, he’s got a good team.”
He says manager Howe did good business in the summer, replacing the Norwich-bound Lewis Grabban with Callum Wilson, who has scored 11 times in all competitions already this season.
"They signed the lad Wilson from Coventry, who is scoring all the goals. Yann Kermorgant was a really good signing for them, Matt Ritchie, who they got from Swindon last year, he’s a really good player.
"They signed Andrew Surman from Norwich, who was excellent for them last year and has gone back and signed a three-year deal.
"He’s just continued to get good players in, good footballers, who like to play football and they’re a really competitive team. I think they’ll be in the play-offs at least, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.”
McCarthy says Dean Court, currently known as the Goldsands Stadium and which is a sell-out for Saturday’s game with 1,309 Town fans making the trip to Dorset, is significantly different from how it was during his playing days.
"I played there all that time ago against Ted MacDougall and Mick Butler,” he recalled. "It has changed and it’s a great place. I’ve been down to watch games, it’s got a great atmosphere.
"He’s got a really good team there, but I’m under no illusions that it’s a nice little humble place.
"You go down and treat it like that you get a nice little humble slapping because they’re a good team.”
He says his fifth-placed Town team - they dropped a position following Brentford's victory on Friday, Bournemouth are three places ahead of the Blues with one more point - go into the game in a confident mood: "I’ve never feared anybody, there’s no point, is there? You might as well go and have a go at it.
"We’ll have to play well. We’ll have to play well to get something there. But I would imagine Eddie Howe will be saying exactly the same - ‘If we treat this mob lightly then you’re going to get run all over the top of and they’ll beat us’. I’m looking forward to it. A top-four game, how nice is that? It’s great.”
Cherries boss Howe is a fan of his Ipswich counterpart, telling the Bournemouth Daily Echo: "I think Mick McCarthy is an outstanding manager and I have a lot of time for him and the jobs he has done down the years.
"Whenever you play one of his teams, you know you are going to have to perform very well to get anything from the game.
"He always sets up his teams very well and they are always incredibly difficult to beat. I think the Ipswich side this season isn’t too dissimilar to the one we faced last season.
"They are very strong and have players who can hurt you if you aren’t at the top of your game.
"I thought the two games last season were incredibly tight and could have gone either way and I expect no different this time.
"Some of our hallmarks are work-rate, commitment and the players’ attitude to the games. I think Ipswich’s mentality is very similar to ours.
"I am expecting a tough battle between two of the hardest working teams in the Championship and it will be very interesting to see who comes out on top.”
The Cherries will assess the fitness of striker Tokelo Rantie, who has been away with South Africa, but have no injury problems.
Bournemouth midfielder Harry Arter made a couple of appearances for the Town reserves in 2009 while on trial at Portman Road, while David McGoldrick spent three months on loan with the Cherries at the end of the 2006/07 season, scoring six goals in 12 games.
Overall, Town have won 14 (10 in the league) games between the sides, the Cherries 11 (11), while 10 (eight) have been draws.
The Blues haven’t beaten Bournemouth for 18 years since a 3-0 Coca-Cola Cup win at Dean Court, although last year’s two games are the only fixtures since then.
Prior to their 0-0 draw at Middlesbrough in their final game before the international break, the Cherries had won seven matches in a row in all competitions.
They have lost only once in their last 12 games, including two Capital One Cup victories, while Town have suffered only one defeat in their last 13 matches.
In April at Portman Road, Paul Anderson and Paul Green were on target as the sides drew 2-2.
Anderson put the home side in front on 36 but the Cherries hit back via Steve Cook's overhead kick just before the break.
Loanee Green's first Blues goal restored the lead on 56 but Matt Ritchie's deflected freekick gained a point for the Dorset club.
At Dean Court last December, Town stretched their unbeaten record to seven games as the sides drew 1-1. Daryl Murphy put the Blues in front in the 59th minute but Brett Pitman equalised for the largely dominant Cherries on 74.
Saturday’s referee is Michael Bull from Essex, who has shown 34 yellow cards and two red cards in 13 games so far this season.
Bull, who has never previously taken control of a Town game, will be taking charge of only his fifth Championship match.
Squad from: Bialkowski, Gerken, Chambers, Mings, Parr, Berra, Smith, Clarke, Skuse, Hyam, Bru, Bishop, Tabb, Anderson, Henshall, Ambrose, Hunt, McGoldrick, Murphy, Sammon, Bajner.