Former EFL striker turned pundit Sam Parkin feels Ipswich Town and Coventry City will share the spoils when they face off at Portman Road this Saturday.
Kieran McKenna’s club is now 15 points behind the league leaders, who will return to Portman Road on Saturday hoping to extend their five-game winning streak.
The Sky Blues lead the Championship table after 18 games, 10 points ahead of Middlesbrough in second as the season nears its halfway point.
But Ipswich will be looking to cut the points gap this weekend, with their sights set on regaining return to the Premier League after being demoted earlier this year.
Sam Parkin predicts Ipswich Town vs Coventry City scoreline.
Ex-Ipswich striker Parkin believes his former club will secure a point against the runaway league leaders, although he reckons that the visitors are more likely to take victory if there is to be a winner.
The former striker-turned-pundit expects there will be goals as seventh takes on first in the Championship, and believes that a draw would be a better outcome for Coventry, even if it means their winning run coming to an end.
“I fancy [Ipswich] here for a point at least against Coventry,” Parkin told Benjamin Bloom on his YouTube channel.
“If I had to pick a winner, I would definitely go with Coventry, possibly because they score a lot.
“I can see another exciting 2-2 here.
“Possibly a better point for Cov at this moment, despite their flying.
“Ipswich are going to want to start winning their home games if they’re going to continue to make things hard for themselves on the road.”
McKenna’s team have gained eight points from their last five games in comparison to the maximum 15 from five matches that the Sky Blues have won.
Saturday’s meeting will also be the first game at Portman Road in four matches after the jumbled up schedule led to the Tractor Boys playing away from home three times in a row, and their form has somewhat taken a drop as a result, with an indifferent run of results to boot.
Coventry City don’t need outcome as much as Ipswich Town, but momentum is vital
Coventry’s impressive winning streak has given them a significant advantage in the Championship table, with them presently 12 points ahead of third-place Millwall.
That means they don’t necessarily need the win on Saturday as much as Ipswich do, especially given their previous two results, but momentum is important in football, and getting as many points as possible before the turn of the year will make things easier for Frank Lampard in the final few months of the season.
McKenna’s side, on the other hand, must recover, and a victory over the Sky Blues would be a statement result. It is not an insurmountable challenge, either, given that Wrexham just overcame Lampard’s side at home.
This should be an intriguing encounter between two exciting offensive sides, so a 2-2 draw is a very real possibility, and it would be a fantastic point for Lampard’s team.
xz
