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Ipswich Town 1-4 Peterborough United - Match Report Saturday, 1st Feb 2020 17:07
Town dropped to fourth in League One after a disastrous 4-1 home defeat to Peterborough United. Ivan Toney netted a penalty on 23, Sammie Szmodics made it 2-0 10 minutes later after dispossessing keeper Will Norris, then in the second half Siriki Dembele and Szmodics again scored on 50 and 74 to secure Posh their first ever league win at Portman Road and their first in all competitions since January 1960. Sub James Norwood netted a 79th minute consolation from the spot for the Blues.
Cole Skuse returned to the midfield for Emyr Huws in an otherwise unchanged Town side, the Welshman having suffered an ankle injury at Rotherham in the week.
Norris continued in goal behind a back three of skipper Luke Chambers, James Wilson and Luke Woolfenden. Luke Garbutt and Gwion Edwards were the wing-backs.
In midfield, Skuse joined Flynn Downes with Alan Judge ahead of them behind front pair Will Keane and Kayden Jackson.
Teddy Bishop was missing from the bench having suffered a knee problem in training, while Peterborough were unchanged for the fourth successive match.
The visitors struck the game’s first shot in the fourth minute but Posh skipper Mark Beevers’s well-struck volley from a half-cleared corner from the left was, rather fortunately for the Blues, hit straight at Norris in the Town goal.
But Town soon began to get on top. However, their first effort at goal didn’t come until the 13th minute when ex-Posh wideman Edwards cut in and hit a left-foot strike over.
The Blues were forced into a change in the 16th minute when Garbutt, who had undergone treatment a few moments earlier, was forced off and was replaced by Myles Kenlock.
Peterborough started to look the greater threat, winning a number of corners, and on 19 Siriki Dembele hit a shot from the edge of the box which was easily snaffled by Norris.
In the 22nd minute Peterborough took the lead from the penalty spot. Dembele was played in on goal on the right of the area by Toney and Wilson slid in, catching the striker. Dembele managed an effort at goal as he fell which was stopped by Norris and then cleared by Chambers.
The Peterborough players protested but referee Andy Woolmer wasn’t interested until he spoke to his assistant and pointed to the spot. Under the old rules Wilson would have been red-carded for a professional foul but given that he made a genuine attempt to play the ball the defender rightly stayed on.
League One top scorer Toney took the kick and rolled his 21st in all competitions to Norris’s left and into the corner of the net.
On 32 Edwards crossed from the right and Kenlock headed well wide as Town looked for an equaliser but two minutes later they conceded a disastrous second.
Skuse played the ball back to Norris under no pressure and the keeper tried to take it past Szmodics just to the right of his goal but was dispossessed and the former Colchester man was able to tap the easiest goal he will ever score into an empty net.
Town looked to hit back in the 37th minute when Edwards made a mazy run down the right. The Welshman’s cross fell to Judge on the edge of the six-yard box but the Irishman was only able to stab into Posh keeper Christy Pym’s arms.
Norris had another shaky moment on 39, failing to hold on to a cross when under pressure on the edge of the box but fortunately the ball fell safely. At the other end, Jackson was hauled to the ground by his neck by Beevers but with referee Woolmer not spotting a foul.
Neither side were able to seriously threaten in four minutes of additional time and the half-time whistle was greeted by muted boos from the frustrated Town support.
Having conceded the opener via the penalty - which looked a correct decision - the Blues had started to show signs of pushing for an equaliser when Norris was undone by overconfidence inside his own six-yard box, not the on-loan Wolves keeper’s first error in recent games.
As half-time approached Town had begun to control the game against a Peterborough side content to sit in their half but without creating a significant opportunity.
Norwood replaced Judge ahead of the second half with the Blues desperately needing more of a goal threat if they were to get back into the game.
Norris was forced into an early save when Toney’s shot was deflected towards his left post, but the keeper got down to his left to save leading to a smattering of sarcastic cheers.
A minute later, the keeper did superbly to tip a Toney header wide but with referee Woolmer having awarded a foul against the Posh frontman.
In the 51st minute Posh made it 3-0. Keane’s knockback inside just inside the Town half fell to Jack Taylor and his well-weighted ball forward found Dembele, who cut inside Wilson before shooting beyond Norris.
There was controversy two minutes later when Jackson again looked to be hauled down, this time when away on goal. However, referee Woolmer gave a freekick to the visitors.
Wilson claimed he was pulled over as a corner came in from the right on the hour mark with referee Woolmer again not interested, then Peterborough swapped Reece Brown for Josh Knight.
On 65 Dan Butler was yellow-carded for a foul on Downes, then two minutes later sub Knight joined him for a scuffle with Woolfenden.
Shell-shocked Town had failed to get going in the second half after the blow of the third Peterborough goal. But as the 70-minute mark approached they began to seriously press for the first time, Jackson sending a ball across the box from the right but too far in front of Keane at the far post. Moments later, the former Hull City man was replaced by Freddie Sears.
On 73 Jackson flicked a header wide from a Woolfenden cross from the left, then Posh switched Joe Ward for Niall Mason.
Moments later, Town’s disastrous afternoon got even worse. Toney flicked on a long Pym kick, Dembele played it over the backline and Szmodics confidently beat Norris to make it 4-0.
Streams of Blues supporters immediately decided they had seen enough and departed Portman Road.
Edwards was booked for a foul in the 77th minute, his 10th yellow card of the season meaning the Welshman will miss the next two matches.
Town pulled one back two minutes later from the game’s second penalty. Norwood ran round the outside of Beevers on the right and the defender slid in taking both ball and player. Referee Woolmer again looked to his assistant before pointing to the spot. Norwood himself took the kick and beat Pym to his left to claim his 11th of the campaign.
Posh replaced Nathan Thompson with Rhys Bennett in the 83rd minute before Toney stung Norris’s hands with a 20-yard strike.
The latter stages of the game - including five additional minutes - were played out with the result settled.
Close to the end Skuse was booked for a frustrated foul before the whistle confirmed the end of an awful afternoon for Town.
The Blues were very much the architects of their own downfall in the first half, allowing the visitors two soft goals. The third and fourth in the second half were little better and aside from Norwood’s penalty Town never looked like a goal.
Town’s decent run from the start of the year which took them to the top of the table has been brought to an abrupt halt with the defeats at Rotherham and now at home to Posh, a slide which has to be arrested far more quickly than the downturn prior to Christmas.
The Blues are next in action at Sunderland, who were beaten 2-0 at Portsmouth today, next Saturday.
Posh are free scoring and with the addition of Smodzics they are a force. Reluctance to sign anyone in the Jan window may cost us. We are still in the mix, just Lambo needs to bring in Norwood, Holy and Nolan next game.
4 of best players now injured and no strength in depth. Opportunity in transfer window to bring in a few additions and ease the burden........nope. Inept tactics and decision making dont help. Wont get automatic promotion.
Best case scenario -
Play Norwood from the start (coz he SCORES GOALS). Along with Woolfy, Downes and Jackson. Perhaps by the time we then get KVY, Bishop, Huws and Garbutt (a nucleus of 8) we will have enough games and points left(against lower table opposition) to sneak into the playoffs,
I personally said it already over a year ago!, that this Public Relation stunt of a has-been & nowadays blatantly *on-the-field* toecurlingly INEPT manager isn't a "winner"...
...well the various stats speaks for themselves!
I.E. In stark contrast to all his biweekly recurring former merits this former merits that *anti-eargasm*!, in this Day & Age he can only really "manage" to beat poor to mediocre (or temporarily heavily crippled) teams! Winning % against everybody else is beyond abysmal, and has been so for years & years, including elsewhere.
However, pure magical driven things do happen in this game once in a while, so to say that it's not completely outside the Realm of Possibilities that "somehow" Harry Potter-esque his awesome (not!) cluelessly rotated Town outfit wins the play-off final...
...but if so, it certainly won't be BECAUSE of Paul Lambert, but IN SPITE OF him!!!
Period.
PS: Oh and Paul Lambert's much talked about ehmm "timely" and unusual, in every sense of the words, contract-extension = Most unwarranted one + biggest joke in British football this season. Hands Down! Alas well done Marvelous Marcus! including with them ehmm super January transfer-window reinforcements lol ... once again!
We can blame lambert like we did mick and Jewell all we want but all those managers have a history of getting teams promoted m!? We sell players for pittance when they're worth much more like Bart and Webster so who's the common denominator in this? Who's had 6 managers in 11 years? If you think this team is good enough wobble your head! The common denominator is Evans no one else! A successful business man who lets Bart go for half the price from start of the season, Webster let go for 5 million in desperation a season later goes for over 25 million. Teams like Brentford and Bristol city don't let any player go unless they get their market price and they get gates of 10000!!! They're not in debt and they don't have an owner worth over 800 million? We've gone from championship challengers to average league one team in his tenure! We haven't beaten any team in the top 6 so what chance of going up this season? It appears some fans will support Evans even if we were in the conference it's a joke!
I don't blame Paul Lambert particularly. He can only work with what he's got. We were so clearly in need of an injection up front - or anywhere - in the transfer window, and we didn't get one. However expensive that would have been, it might have been worth it. I really think that would have been a psychological boost. We are vulnerable at the back to big bruising forwards, and we have virtually no real threat up front. I'm not sure we deserved to lose 1-4 today, but we never looked like winning. I don't have an answer, other than that we will just have to keep going and see where we end up.
Evans ownership over 10 years and all equated to abject failure in all respects, and a debt of just under 100 mil to him...it,s all going rather well with him owning the club...The blokes a joke owner.
Was in two minds whether to go as not well at all, but since my husband had a ticket, I braved it. Wish I had stayed in bed!! Awful match, speechless at the second goal we gifted them. The referee was appalling , Peterborough were a horrible team to play, cheating and diving. Well done to Norwood for the penalty (which to me wasn't a penalty but we had enough decisions against us). Hope Garbutt isn't going to be out too long. Thought Keane tried but cannot see how we are going to go up playing like this. A great shame after some shoots of hope a couple of games back.
Too many blaming PL imo. Yes he has picked the team but of the massive squad which he has to pick from there is very little quality. Downes was miles ahead of any player on the park and has to leave in the summer to better himself. Keane again was excellent keeping the ball but that's about it for positive comments. Two average keepers one isn't ours and is seen as our number one. He's indecisive. Garbutt not ours now our injured and no adequate replacement. Kenlock looks well overweight and off the pace. Skuse was shocking wasted every single dead ball and was slow and poor in possession. Jackson a league two player who works hard but cannot read the line or control a ball. He offers little goal threat. Norwood league two player fantastic record but no touch again doesn't read the line and has no first touch. Lambert cannot make a silk purse from a sows ear. Posh were a different level to us. Hungrier and quicker and good on the ball. Downes the only player upset at defeat. Says it all. Time for Dobra and McGavin
Lambert AND Evans put now! Total disgrace. And the spineless players should hang their heads too. Not only will we not get promoted, it's just as well. We are only just good enough for League one. But we have the ability to get promoted, but the players, the manager and the owner don't have the balls for it.
Before the game i though that Peterbroughs attacking team was going to cause problems for our team including a slow Chambers & Skuse. Sadly i was right. It also puzzles me why Lambery
Embarrassing pathetic & unacceptable. Yes we were unfortunate to lose Garbutt who is so important to us & had some major decisions go against us BUT we were awful & the score line didn't flatter Posh in the slightest. To perform that poorly in such a vital match is unacceptable. Massive improvement is needed on pitch now. Defeat next Saturday will see us fall out of the top 6 & that will I fear see us not get back in there.Norris has to be dropped after the clanger as the fans are now against him. Club & players have a massive amount to put right
We dont seem to create chances like other teams and the goal threat from midfield is very limited find it very strange that one of the most creative players we have cant even get on the bench but a premier league team was looking at buying him
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