Ipswich Town go play host to Ligue 1 side Le Havre for Portman Road on Tuesday evening for di latest club friendly match dis summer. For dia previous game, di Tractor Boys bin beat Wycombe Wanderers 2-1, while Le Havre bin draw 1-1 with Ligue 2 side Stade Lavallois Mayenne.
After relegation from Premier League for 2024-25 season, Ipswich bin finish 19th with 22 points from 38 matches. But dem bounce back strong for Championship, securing automatic promotion back to England top flight at first time of asking. Dem beat Millwall to second place by one point.
Despite leading di club back to Premier League, Kieran McKenna announce for June say im go step down as Ipswich boss to take break from football and spend more time with family. For im place, former Wolverhampton Wanderers and Bournemouth boss Gary O’Neil sign three-year deal wey go keep am for club until summer 2029. But im no get best start, losing two of im first three matches in charge. O’Neil arrive from Strasbourg after season wey bring Conference League semi-final and Coupe de France success.
Although dem never face Le Havre before, Ipswich get strong record against French opposition, most recently beating AJ Auxerre 3-0 for friendly last season. O’Neil dey look to respond with consecutive victories by continuing dat streak. On di flip side, Le Havre finish three points above Ligue 1 relegation playoff spot for 2025-26 season, narrowly avoid drop for third consecutive campaign since winning promotion for 2023.
Le Havre bin experience rocky patch for early spring, earning only one point over five game period. But with just one loss for dia last seven fixtures, including crucial 2-0 victory away to Lorient on final day, dem secure dia status for another year. For preseason, dem get mixed results: lose to Amiens, beat Red Star, and most recently draw with Laval. Dem also bin claim 2-0 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion for friendly over 20 years ago.
Ipswich go miss plenty players: Azor Matusiwa and Jack Taylor dey recover from surgery, while Harry Clarke continues rehabilitation from knee tendon issue. Whether Daizen Maeda or Kjell Scherpen go feature, we no know – both players just sign for club over previous week. For Le Havre, goalkeeper Mory Diaw don return to training after competing for Senegal for World Cup and get chance to start for Portman Road. Also, Nigerian forward Josh Maja sign for Le Havre on Saturday after im contract expire at West Bromwich Albion.
Ipswich don back dia new manager with almost £84m investment, headlined by Emersonn from Toulouse, Abdul Fatawu from Leicester City, Issa Diop from Fulham, and Daizen Maeda from Celtic. Dem also add Chuba Akpom, Cedric Kipre, Kjell Scherpen, and Kayne van Oevelen. Le Havre finish 14th for Ligue 1 with 35 points; dia underlying numbers suggest dem deserve slightly more. Josh Maja don arrive to provide greater firepower ahead of di new campaign.
Possible starting lineup for Ipswich: Palmer; Johnson, O’Shea, Kipre, Davis; Nunez, Humphreys, Clarke; Burns, Akpom, Emersonn. Le Havre possible: Diaw; Camara, Pembele, Lloris, Vinette; Ndiaye, Bodmer, Kechta; Mizuta, Samatta, Vinette. With some promising summer signings, Ipswich go hope to stake stronger claim for surviving Premier League this season. Having bounced back from opening friendly defeat to Amiens, Le Havre no go be pushovers, but we expect Tractor Boys to come out on top for Portman Road.
