Ipswich Town boss Roy Keane is again under fire from supporters following Saturday’s embarassing defeat at home to Barnsley. Blues faithful are growing increasingly tired of turgid displays on home soil, and many believe that poor performances as well as results at Hull and bitter rivals Norwich in the next fortnight could prompt reclusive owner Marcus Evans to act.
Although Town are just two points from the playoff places supporters have, understandably, grown frustrated at a lack of imagination and flair in their play. It is an aspect that has been missing since the comparatively heady days of Joe Royle’s managerial reign, where you could generally expect Ipswich to outscore their opponents nine times out of ten.
On one hand it is easy to side with the fans, who turned on their own players against the Tykes with particularly disrespectful chants, yet a smidgen of sympathy goes out to Roy Keane. The Town chief had a handful of deals for solid, experienced players lined up over the summer, only for Marcus Evans to tighten the purse strings and force him to go with what he’s already got.
A visit to Hull City this coming weekend would have been somewhat less daunting were it not for Saturday’s debacle and the Tigers’ confident despatch of Preston in front of the SKY television cameras on Friday night. However, Nigel Pearson’s improving side will be buoyed following the takeover of the club by Assem and Ehab Allam last week. This combined with the continued absence of senior players such as Gareth McAuley and David Norris who remain injured, means that the youngsters face a daunting weekend.
As if that wasn’t enough, the following week Town enter the lions den with the first East Anglian derby of the season against Norwich at Carrow Road. Anything less than the right result in Norfolk, regardless of the performance, could leave Keane’s Portman Road future in tatters.
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