Town tonight face arguably their biggest test of the current campaign when they take on leaders Leicester but even if they fall behind to the rampant Foxes, according to leading marksman Conor Chaplin it will not knock him and his colleagues off course.

The Blues ended a five-game winless run – four draws, one of them a Portman Road stalemate against tonight’s opponents, and a defeat at fellow promotion-chasers Leeds – when they defeated another side with play-off ambitions, Sunderland, 2-1 last weekend, Chaplin settling the game with his ninth goal of the season.

Chaplin agreed it was a rare run without a win and how important it was to end the sequence with victory over the Black Cats.

“Yes, it was,” he said. “We lost one game; it’s not like we’d lost a lot of games. We hadn’t at all. We’d lost one game and we drew more than we’d been used to. It was never at a point where we were thinking ‘Where’s the next win coming from?’

“We knew we were going to win games. We score enough goals to win games, definitely. It was just a case of keep doing what we were doing and maybe the luck of the draw was going to change at some point, in terms of a goal or not conceding or scoring a goal. I felt like we got the rub of the green on the margins on the night.”

Town have collected 20 of their 58 league points this season from losing positions, a statistic that confirms their never-say-die attitude, and Chaplin said he was well aware of how hugely important it was not to allow falling behind to scupper the game plan.

He added: “A lot has been spoken about it, definitely. It’s impressive, but it’s a big part of the way we are as a group. We don’t panic and we don’t change if we go a goal down.

“I think everyone is starting to see that. If we concede a goal first there’s no panic in the lads at all and that’s genuine. I’m not just saying that.

“It’s a big thing that the boss spoke about last season and I think we’ve come on in leaps and bounds. It’s just continuing doing what we’re doing.

“A game doesn’t turn on its head just because of one goal, especially in the first half, and I think we’ve shown that we can still be in control, we can still be dangerous, even if we’re a goal behind.

“We just keep doing what we’re doing; we trust the process and it’s turned out well for us because we’re going to concede goals. We’re playing against great players; we’re playing against really good teams.

“We’re definitely going to concede goals but we back ourselves to score a lot of goals as well. That’s something we’re really proud of and happy about.”

Town go to the King Power Stadium tonight with skipper Sam Morsy completing a two-game ban, defender Cameron Burgess still on international duty with Australia at the Asian Cup competition in Qatar and striker George Hirst sidelined with a long-term hamstring problem.

With another Aussie, experienced midfielder Massimo Luongo, also absent from the win over Sunderland, fans have seen recent arrivals Lewis Travis and Jeremy Sarmiento, on loan from Blackburn and Brighton respectively, featuring along with squad men George Edmundson, Jack Taylor and Kayden Jackson in recent weeks.

On the subject of midfielder Taylor, a £1.5 million signing from Peterborough last summer, Chaplin said: “I’m really happy for him. He definitely hasn’t played as much as he would have liked. He was brought in in the summer to have an impact on the team and he’s definitely had an impact on the team in the changing room.

“On the pitch he’s put some unbelievable performances in and scored a good amount of goals for a midfielder so far. Probably not as much as he would have liked, definitely, but for me his courage and his bravery speak volumes.

“Whenever he comes into the team he wants to get on the ball. He drives us up the pitch, always wanting the ball. He never shies away from taking the ball in tight situations or anything like that.

“I’ve been nothing but impressed with him and I think he’s such a good guy as well, to have around the team. He’s fitted in so well with the group that we’ve got here and he’s brought a lot to us as well.

“He’s brought such a different threat in terms of a midfield position. There’s a lot of competition in that area and there’s a lot of competition throughout the whole team in fact, so it’s never easy to come into a team that’s been sort of together for maybe a year or 18 months.

“To come straight into the team was maybe never going to be the case because it’s tough to learn the way we play, to adapt from previous styles that you’ve been playing at other clubs before you come, but he’s definitely got so, so much better in terms of the way that we play and he’s added his own style as well into our team, which is a big, big thing to do and really important.”

Asked about the impact of Jackson, who netted in the win over Sunderland, Chaplin added: “Everyone loves Jacko. He’s probably one of the most selfless players that I’ve played with in terms of his work ethic and his runs for the team.

“He’s such a good professional and such a good example to the whole squad in the way that he conducts himself throughout the week, whether you’re playing or if you’re not playing.

“I think that he’s a big, big part of our culture and the way we do things. Like I said, he’s an example to players playing or not playing in the way that he works throughout the week.

“He trains at such a good intensity and professionalism throughout the week. I think everyone can see what he gives on a Saturday or a Tuesday night as well. It’s incredible; he really does work his socks off.

“I’m just so happy he got his goal because his finishing is a really good part of his game that people maybe don’t think about when he’s in those positions.

“I expect him to score them because I do finishing drills with him a lot during the week and he’s got that finish on lock at the moment. He’s really dialled into those sort of finishes when he’s in that position.”

Chaplin also confirmed that Messrs Travis and Sarmiento had settled in to life at Portman Road, adding: “Yes, really, really well. I think it’s an easy group to come into, to sort of integrate into. It’s a good culture that we’ve set at the club and those two have added really well.

“We’ve won their personality and their trust as a person and secondly as a player as well. I think they’ve shown already in their games – one game for Lewis and two games for Jezzo – probably what they’re going to bring to the team and that’s going to be something – a big, big boost for us.”

Photos: TWTD/Matchday Images

cooper4england added 07:30 - Jan 22 If i have one criticism of that team it is exactly that we don't change things. The system is great and works brilliantly against 90% of teams in this division. It's the top few teams that are able to press high and close down spaces that we struggle against i..e Leeds and west brom. My worry is Leicester will be the same. Don't feel it's critical that we win tonight as not many will get wins at 'filbert st' but if the passing game isn't working we do need a plan b. Without it i fear lower clubs will suss us out and we may struggle more in the second half of the season.

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bobble added 07:55 - Jan 22 lovely .....................until we slip into 3rd
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Dissboyitfc added 08:03 - Jan 22 we are 3rd bobble! Tough game tonight, think we will see more of Sarmiento tonight.Its a winnable game. Leicester have lost twice this season at home, so we can get something but concerned about our options up front.
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Ipswichbusiness added 08:59 - Jan 22 “Messrs Travis and Sarmiento”? When did we start referring to football players as Mr?
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BeattiesBackPocket added 14:27 - Jan 22 Cooper4england what based on 3 losses (the least in the league) so far this season that’s your assessment? We’ve drawn one game with Leicester and beaten Southampton who are the top teams as well?? Lol
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