Conor Chaplin, Wes Burns and Nathan Broadhead forged a deadly attacking link-up during back-to-back promotions.Conor Chaplin, Wes Burns and Nathan Broadhead forged a deadly attacking link-up during back-to-back promotions. (Image: PA)
What came before...
Town's back-to-back promotions were built on settled line-ups and, with it, an almost telepathic team chemistry.
In the second half of the League One season, it was Walton; H.Clarke, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Luongo; Burns, Chaplin, Broadhead; Hirst stamped on the team sheet week after week.
In the Championship campaign it was Hladky; H.Clarke/Tuanzebe, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Luongo; Burns/Hutchinson, Chaplin, Broadhead; Hirst/Moore.
In 2023/24, five players started 40+ league games and a further three hit 30+. It was a different story in the Premier League though...
Dara O'Shea had the longest run of Premier League starts for Ipswich in 2024/25.Dara O'Shea had the longest run of Premier League starts for Ipswich in 2024/25. (Image: PA)
Chop and change
Ipswich played 42 games across all competitions this season. Incredibly, 41 different combinations of players were used.
Just once has an unchanged team been named - from Bournemouth (a) to Wolves (h) in early April. The average number of changes from league game to league game is three.
Only rock-bottom Southampton (36) used more players than Ipswich (32) in the Premier League this season
Five players - Dara O'Shea (32), Liam Delap (31), Sam Morsy (31), Leif Davis (30) and Omari Hutchinson (30) - started 30+ league games.
A crippling injury list consisting of season-enders and repeated set-backs (fully documented here), plus several suspensions, has meant a lot of chopping and changing around them though.
This is the longest run of league starts for each player: O'Shea (35), Davis (24), Muric (16), Palmer (15), Delap (14), Hutchinson (10), Cajuste (10), Enciso (10), Morsy (9), Greaves (7), Tuanzebe (6), Burgess (6), Phillips (5), Szmodics (5), Johnson (5), Walton (5), Woolfenden (4), J.Clarke (3), Chaplin (3), Philogene (2), Broadhead (2), Hirst (2), Burns (2), H.Clarke (2), Taylor (2), Townsend (2), Godfrey (1), Ogbene (1).
Wes Burns made the most number of starts in the right-wing/right wing-back position for Ipswich in 24/25 - despite his season being ended by injury in January.Wes Burns made the most number of starts in the right-wing/right wing-back position for Ipswich in 24/25 - despite his season being ended by injury in January. (Image: PA)
Most-used XI
Although the formation has flexed throughout the season, it is possible to look at every line-up as a 4-2-3-1 of sorts.
Categorising each starting XI into those slots, these are the players who have started the most in each position across all 42 games:
GK: Aro Muric (19); RB: Axel Tuanzebe (21), RCB: Dara O'Shea (27); LCB: Jacob Greaves (22); LB: Davis (32); RCM: Morsy (32); LCM: Cajuste (26); RW: Burns (13); R10: Hutchinson (19); L10: J.Clarke (15); ST: Delap (32).
That team never started a game together. The closest we came to seeing it was in the 1-1 draw at Southampton last September when 10 of the above 11 were selected (with Szmodics as the left-10).
NB: The above list only includes starts in the stated position, therefore ignoring, for example, when O'Shea played right-back or Greaves played left-back.
Jack Clarke had a variety of different team-mates around him during a stop-start debut season for the club.Jack Clarke had a variety of different team-mates around him during a stop-start debut season for the club. (Image: PA)
Few relationships built
Incredibly, across 2024/25, Town started...
17 different combinations of right-back and right-winger.
17 different combinations of right-10 and left-10.
15 different combinations of right-winger and right-10.
15 different combinations of left centre-mid and left-10.
They're also in double digits for combinations of players when it comes to left-back/left-10, right centre-mid/right-10, striker/right-wing, striker/left-10, striker/right-10, right-back/right centre-mid too.
The most established partnerships are O'Shea/Morsy as the right centre-back/right centre-mid (23), Davis/Cajuste as left-back/left centre-mid (22), Davis/Greaves as left-back/left centre-back (21), Delap/Hutchison as the striker/right-10 (19 games) and Muric/Davis as keeper/left-back (18).
For the latter to make the top five, given Muric barely started in 2025, speaks volumes.
Ideally, of course, you'd want your centre-half, centre-mid and full-back/winger pairings at the top of this list.
O'Shea and Greaves played directly alongside each other just 13 times, we saw the Morsy/Cajuste central pairing 18 times, while the most bedded in side partnerships were Davis/Clarke (11) and Tuanzebe/Burns (5).
This graphic indicates the most-used players in each position for Ipswich Town in 2025/25 - and how many times they started alongside each of the team-mates directly alongside them.This graphic indicates the most-used players in each position for Ipswich Town in 2025/25 - and how many times they started alongside each of the team-mates directly alongside them. (Image: Newsquest) 'Chemistry score'
As the attached graphic shows, there are 23 direct connections on the football pitch.
Multiple 23 by the 42 games played across all competitions and you get a maximum possible 'chemistry score' of 966.
Ipswich's tally - the total of combined connections between the most started team - comes out at just 316.
I wish I had the time/inclination to work out the above for every other team in the Premier League, but I'm pretty confident Town's score would compare poorly.
Nottingham Forest have eight players who started 30+ games. Newcastle named the same team for seven straight matches in the second half of the season. Those are just two examples.
Successful teams tend to be settled ones. It's important Ipswich build a few more relationships in the side next season.
Kieran McKenna will want a more settled starting XI next season.Kieran McKenna will want a more settled starting XI next season. (Image: PA)