[Ipswich Town](https://vitalfootball.co.uk/vital-ipswich-town/) return to Portman Road under the lights on Friday Night for a blockbuster Premier League clash against [Liverpool](https://vitalfootball.co.uk/vital-liverpool/). It’s a fixture that will bring intensity and expectation, with Gary O’Neil’s side looking to make a statement against one of Europe’s elite. The atmosphere will be electric as it always is at Portman Road; the stakes will be high and the challenge enormous, but Town arrive with belief and confidence to have a right go for a result.
The record between the sides is brutally one‑sided. Liverpool have won all of the last five meetings, scoring heavily and controlling each fixture. Ipswich have not beaten Liverpool in over two decades. Still, this fixture arrives with different context: a rebuilt Town squad, a new tactical identity and a home crowd desperate to see their side challenge one of the league’s giants.
* Feb 2001 – 0–6 (Liverpool win)
* May 2002 – 0–5 (Liverpool win)
* Dec 2002 – 1–1 (Liverpool win, League Cup)
* Aug 2022 – 0–2 (Liverpool win)
* Jan 2025 – 1–4 (Liverpool win)
Kjell Scherpen; Dara O’Shea (C), Issa Diop, Jacob Greaves, Leif Davis; Saša Lukić, Exequiel Palacios; Abdul Fatawu, Julio Enciso, Daizen Maeda; Zian Flemming
O’Neil is expected to continue with his high-aggressive, high-energy 4-2-3-1. The double pivot of Saša Lukić and Exequiel Palacios offers control and bite, while the trio of Fatawu, Enciso and Maeda provides pace, creativity and relentless pressing behind Flemming. Defensively, O’Shea, Diop and Greaves will all need to be at their sharpest against Liverpool’s fluid front line.
Alisson Becker; Jeremie Frimpong, Jérémy Jacquet, Virgil van Dijk (C), Milos Kerkez; Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister; Víctor Muñoz, Florian Wirtz, Cody Gakpo; Alexander Isak
Liverpool will arrive at Portman Road with frightening attacking quality. Wirtz and Gakpo drifting between the lines will test Ipswich’s defensive shape while Isak’s movement poses a constant threat. Szoboszlai and Mac Allister provide elite control in midfield, and Frimpong’s overlapping runs will demand discipline from Leif Davis.
Ipswich’s intensity with their pressing structure and home advantage should allow them to compete far more closely than in previous meetings. Liverpool do present elite quality in every department, but Town’s revamped midfield and attacking energy give them the tools to disrupt rhythm and create chances of their own. With both sides capable of controlling spells of the game, this feels like a contest that could swing either way, and the resilience may be enough to earn a result.
Prediction: Ipswich Town 2–2 Liverpool