| Ipswich Town 0 v 2 Brighton and Hove Albion FA Premier League Thursday, 16th January 2025 Kick-off 19:30 |  |
Ipswich Town 0-2 Brighton & Hove Albion - Match Report Thursday, 16th Jan 2025 21:37 Second-half goals from Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter saw Brighton & Hove Albion to a 2-0 victory over the Blues at Portman Road. Town had grown into the first half and forced visitors keeper Bart Verbruggen into a number of saves, but in the second period, after Joao Pedro had been very lucky not to see red for charging into Town keeper Christian Walton, Mitoma netted on 59 and Rutter with nine minutes remaining with the Blues never looking like getting back in it once they were behind. Boss Kieran McKenna made three changes from the team which drew 2-2 at Fulham 11 days ago with Omari Hutchinson a surprise starter and with Kalvin Phillips and Wes Burns also coming into the team, and captain Sam Morsy on the Blues bench for only the second time in a league match, the first at Oxford in March 2022. Walton continued in goal against his old club with Burns wide on the right and Leif Davis on the left with McKenna sticking with the back three of Dara O’Shea, who skippered, Luke Woolfenden and Jacob Greaves, despite the signing of Ben Godfrey, who was among the subs. Phillips, who is ineligible for Sunday’s game against his parent club Manchester City, partnered Jens Cajuste in the double pivot with Hutchinson, who had been out with a groin problem and was expected to be a sub at best, and Nathan Broadhead behind number nine Liam Delap. In addition to Morsy and Godfrey, striker George Hirst was back on the bench in the league for the first time since November. Brighton, who had former Town central defender Adam Webster captaining, made four changes from the team which won 4-0 in the FA Cup at Norwich at the weekend with Joao Pedro OK to start after an ankle injury, replacing Rutter, who was among the subs. Verbruggen returned in goal for Jason Steele, while Matt O'Riley and Simon Adingra replaced Julio Enciso and Yankubah Minteh, with all three players dropping out on the bench, alongside club captain Lewis Dunk, ex-England international Danny Welbeck and Solly March. The visitors saw most of the ball in the early stages but without causing any danger until the sixth minute when Joel Veltman looped a deep cross for Mitoma at the back post but O’Shea in front of him flicked a header past the Japanese international. The game continued to be played uniformly in the Town half until the 12th minute when Phillips and Hutchinson exchanged passes on halfway before the ex-Chelsea man broke into Brighton territory and was dumped on the floor by Webster, who was fortunate not to be booked. The free-kick came to nothing and moments later a Walton pass out from the back landed at a Brighton player’s feet, but Mitoma’s low shot to his left was easily gathered by the one-time Seagull in the Town goal. Albion continued to dominate possession but with Hutchinson making another break into their half before being dispossessed by Pervis Estupinan. On 22, there was a brief moment of panic after Walton’s clearance found Veltman, but Woolfenden headed his ball into the box behind. Despite their possession, Brighton had failed to threaten and in the 23rd minute it was the Blues who would force the first serious save. Broadhead brought the ball forward from not far over halfway, cutting his way past defenders before hitting a shot from the edge of the area, which Verbruggen did well to palm wide to his left. Town made nothing of the corner but they were gaining belief, Hutchinson making another strong run forward from the right two minutes later but the England U21 international held onto it for too long and was tackled. In the 28th minute, the Blues confidently played their way out from the back, Cajuste passing forward to Broadhead, who moved it on to Delap on the left, the striker cutting in and hitting a shot which Verbruggen again saved down to his left, the Dutch international holding on with Burns ready to pounce. On 38, with Town now having an equal if not greater share of the ball, Hutchinson played in Burns in space on the right, the Welshman having been free in similar situations earlier but without having been spotted. Burns took the ball on, then cut back to the edge of the area where Hutchinson’s shot was blocked. Two minutes later, Jan Paul van Hecke looped a cross in from the right and Estupinan looked to have headed wide ahead of O’Shea but referee Tony Harrington gave a corner. From the flag-kick, the ball flew just over Pedro’s head and out of play, a fortunate escape for the Blues. Moments later, the Brazilian international went to ground and stayed there after minimal contact with Woolfenden, who had beaten him to the ball. Play continued and the Blues kept the ball in the Brighton half as they probed for an opening, before Hutchinson eventually hit a well-struck effort which Verbruggen saved down to his right. Pedro proved to be fine to continue. After one minute of additional time, the half-time whistle was met by applause from the home fans, pleased with their side’s display, the Blues having grown into the half. Brighton saw all the ball in the first 20 minutes or so but without ever forcing Walton into a taxing save with the backline maintaining the solidity seen in recent matches. Broadhead struck the game’s first significant effort and the Blues gained confidence and control the longer the half progressed, Delap and Hutchinson also hitting efforts which required Verbruggen to make saves, albeit not necessarily the toughest stops the Dutchman will make. Hutchinson, Delap, Broadhead and Burns had all caused the visitors problems, particularly on the counter-attack. The early period of the second half was surprisingly open with Broadhead having the ball taken off his feet just as he was getting inti a dangerous area on the edge of the box. Five minutes after the restart, Delap was yellow-carded for an off the ball shove on Van Hecke, the pair, who had also clashed earlier, exchanging views after the card had been shown. Within a minute, Estupinan got into a decent position on the left and crossed to Adingra, whose shot on the turn was blocked. Moments later, Pedro went down very easily as he went past O’Shea on the left of the box, referee Harrington waving away the protests. Pedro already had the Portman Road faithful on his back for the dive and taking to the turf in the first half, but in the 53rd minute they were calling for his dismissal, and with good reason. Greaves played a back pass to Walton and the Brazilian deliberately jumped into the keeper well after the ball had gone, catching him in the face with his shoulder. The Town players surrounded referee Harrington, who eventually showed only a yellow card, much to the anger of the home support. VAR appeared to uphold the decision and Pedro stayed on, while Walton was deemed OK to continue after treatment. Four minutes later, the Blues weren’t far away from going in front, Burns hitting a first-time shot across the face and wide after a long throw had fallen to him in the box. However, it was the visitors who would take the lead in the 59th minute. Greaves was only able to help a ball into the path of Yasin Ayari on the right of the box and the Swedish international cut back to O’Riley, who moved it on to Mitoma, whose low shot beat O’Shea and went under Walton, who may have been unsighted and perhaps still affected by Pedro’s challenge. The goal was harsh on the Blues, who had been the better side for the period either side of the break, although with Brighton starting to look more of a threat. Going in front gave the Seagulls a significant boost of confidence and on 62 Woolfenden was booked for a foul on Pedro as the forward broke midway inside the Town half. Moments later, Albion made a triple change, Dunk, Rutter and Minteh replacing Webster, O’Riley and Adingra. In the 67th minute, Pedro was found in the Town area and hit a shot on the turn which Walton brilliantly tipped wide with the ball otherwise destined for the top corner. The Blues were struggling to get out of their final third for the first time since the early stages and on 69 Rutter hit an effort from a tight angle into the side-netting off a defender. Town made their first changes a minute later, Burns and Cajuste making way for Jack Taylor and Morsy. Eight minutes later, with the Blues having made little further headway and Brighton in control, Pedro was booed off by the Town support as he was replaced by Welbeck. The game was effectively settled in the 81st minute when a free-kick from just outside the area on the left was sent low into the area, Burns appeared to have a chance to clear as it ran loose but Rutter was able to stroke into the corner of the net. VAR took a look as Dunk may have been in front of Walton in an offside position but eventually gave the goal. Town swapped Phillips and Delap for Jack Clarke and Hirst for the final few minutes but with the match already looking beyond McKenna’s men. As the game moved into six additional minutes, Veltman was booked for a foul on Clarke, to sarcastic cheers from the Town support, frustrated by the referee’s decision-making and reluctance to show cards to Brighton players throughout. The Blues were unable to launch a late comeback and referee Harrington’s whistle ended a disappointing night for home supporters. Town had grown into the second half and may feel they should have made more of their opportunities in the opening period, although none were clear-cut chances. Pedro’s challenge on Walton will be the game’s main talking point with the ball well gone and it appearing a deliberate jump shoulder first into the keeper’s face. But once the visitors had gone in front, the Blues never looked like getting back into it with Albion, who previously hadn’t won in eight in the league, regaining their confidence and controlling the game with Town not creating an opportunity. The Blues drop back into the bottom three, level on goal difference with Wolves but with the Old Gold having scored more goals, with Manchester City at Portman Road on Sunday. Town: Walton, O’Shea (c), Woolfenden, Greaves, Davis, Phillips (J Clarke 84), Cajuste (Morsy 70), Burns (Taylor 70), Hutchinson, Broadhead, Delap (Hirst 84). Unused: Muric, Johnson, Godfrey, Townsend, Luongo. Brighton: Verbruggen, Webster (c) (Dunk 63), Pedro (Welbeck 78), Adingra (Minteh 63), Baleba, Mitoma, Ayari (Moder 94), Van Hecke, Estupinan, O’Riley (Rutter 63), Veltman. Unused: Steele, Lamptey, March, Enciso. Referee: Tony Harrington (Cleveland). VAR: Michael Salisbury. Att: 29,403 (Brighton: 2,977).
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