We round off 2024 on Friday with a first Premier League meeting with Ipswich Town in 22 years (8.15pm UK), as we aim to cap another year of progression by remaining in the hunt for silverware in 2025.
Victory would see us climb to second spot in the table and keep the pressure on leaders Liverpool, while maintaining the feel-good factor achieved by reaching the League Cup semi-finals and a resounding 5-1 thumping of Crystal Palace last time out.
At a festively-filled Emirates Stadium, we’ll be looking to extend our 16-game unbeaten home run against a side who haven’t beaten us in N5 since 1979, but Kieran McKenna’s current crop have won two of their last three on their travels as they get to grips with life in the top-flight after successive promotions.
Tractor Boys produce on travels
Having been in League One just two years ago, it’s understandable that Ipswich’s aim is solely about survival. While they head into this game in the drop zone, McKenna’s side have shown plenty of encouraging signs after a harsh learning curve saw them winless after the first 10 games.
While their home form has only yielded four draws, on the road they have picked up their only two victories in their last three away matches. Tottenham Hotspur were dispatched 2-1 last month to register the Tractpor Boys’ first top-flight win since 2002, while Jack Taylor’s 94th-minute strike saw them defeat fellow strugglers Wolves two weeks ago.
But Saturday saw them beaten resoundingly by Newcastle United as the Magpies ran out 4-0 victors at Portman Road, as defensive mistakes caused by playing out from the back came to the fore once again.
What the managers say
Mikel Arteta’s pre-Ipswich press conference
Arteta: “I like Kieran and have a lot of people who know him very closely and they always say great things about him. You can tell how they’re coached, and what they’re trying to do. I think they’ve been very unfortunate in many games not getting the results that they deserve, so it’ll be a very tough game for sure.
“The margins are not big, especially with the results that [Liverpool] are having consistently, it is putting the bar up very high again – which we expected. So we need to raise it again and be very consistent, continue to play the way where we continue winning and wait.”
McKenna: “We need to show the right mentality. It is a chance to show our togetherness, our spirit and our resilience. Our organisation is going to have to be really good and we are going to have to show bravery in moments of the game to take them on in the way we want to.
“It is about educating the players on different moments of the game and different situations, and what is the most appropriate decision to make in each situation. They are not going to get every judgement right in the level that we are operating at – the time and the margins to make your decisions are so, so, so fast.”
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