Newcastle United didn't exactly feel in the festive spirit when traveling there Ipswich Town Last time, as Eddie Howe's ruthless Magpies inflicted a crushing 4-0 defeat on the hosts in their final home game before Christmas.
Now, the Tractor Boys are hoping Arsenal will be satisfied after the 25th celebrations, with a grueling trip to the Emirates Stadium now on the Suffolk side's agenda.
Kieran McKenna He will also be desperate to see the lessons learned from that traumatic experience against Toon, as his side's defensive frailties cost them dearly in that loss.
Ipswich's defensive problems
Newcastle would eventually end the one-sided affair after putting together a giant formation Six great opportunitieswith four of them taken against consistently weak hosts.
That means the porous Tractor Boys are now on the verge of doing just that Conceived 32 goals Since promotion, only Leicester City, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Southampton have conceded more than 37, 40 and 36 respectively.
No one from Ipswich's back four particularly covered themselves in glory against Newcastle, with Harry Clarke eventually walking off the field with just one goal. He won one duel From five attempts, while generally poor passing from the back enabled Alexander Isak to make it 3-0 on the day.
That horrific moment was essentially the fault of Arjanette Muric, who has become a scapegoat for the Portman Road fans, having disappointed them badly in recent matches when they were crying out for a more reliable goalkeeper.
Muric's tough time at Ipswich
Although the Swede has been lethal with ten goals scored in his last 11 games, he is unlikely to get an easier goal than the one he scored against Ipswich to score his second of the afternoon, as Izak confidently slotted past Kosovo after the goal. . The ball fell gently on him.
After sending four goals to the Magpies, the former Manchester City player has gone one more game without a clean sheet this season, with only Muric I've managed to boast one so far When Ipswich successfully shut out Brighton & Hove Albion in mid-September.
He has achieved impressive success Six saves When facing the Seagulls, McKenna then went out of his way at the final whistle to wax lyrical about his goalkeeper, suggesting that Muric had “really high” Roof and showed his “best” against Fabian Horzler's tough team.
However, since then, the 26-year-old has struggled to maintain that high form, with concerns that Ipswich could be the second team to be ousted by Muric after swallowing the bitter relegation pill with Burnley last season.
|
Muric scored clean sheets by division – Premier League and Championship |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
to divide |
games |
Objectives accepted |
Clean sheets |
|
Premier League |
26 |
46 |
1 |
|
championship |
45 |
35 |
20 |
|
Its source Transfer market |
|||
The above table won't generate any more confidence either, as Moric's clean sheet against the Seagulls was his first ever in the Premier League, with many at Portman Road wondering why such an inexperienced goalkeeper was there. Picked up for a £15 million bumperespecially with this unwanted relegation that also stained his resume.
He hopes he can answer some of his critics with a heroic display against Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, even as they are on the verge of an emphatic 5-1 win over Crystal Palace.
Ipswich supporters won't be holding their breath, but McKenna will still have faith in him £35,000 per week The keeper could provide some impressive performances to turn around the struggling Tractor Boys side and perhaps help the underdogs stay in the Premier League.
However, if that doesn't happen, this would have to be a buy, and Ipswich will regret signing him.
