New Ipswich.co.uk football writer Alex Osborn breaks down Town's well-earned point against Fulham at Portman Road on Saturday and shares his player ratings and MOTM.
A thunderous strike from Liam Delap earned the Tractor Boys their first point of the season. It was a great reaction following the shock mid-week defeat to AFC Wimbledon, and the Blues can be proud of an impressive display against an established Premier League team.
There was added spice to the occasion after Fulham nabbed Reiss Nelson on loan from Arsenal after it had looked likely he would be coming to Portman Road on deadline day.
A strong second half showing
The first half was lit up by Delap's goal, Ipswich's first in the Premier League at Portman Road for 22 years and one to cherish.
However, Fulham were the stronger team on the ball in the opening 45 minutes, without creating many clear-cut chances other than their well-worked equaliser from Traore.
Although Town only had 36% possession in the first half, their out-of-possession press and shape worked well, stifling Fulham's key creative midfield threats in Pereira and Smith-Rowe.
In the first half, the Blues struggled to get Morsy and Phillips on the ball. By contrast, the midfield pair started the second half on the front foot, which set the tone for the remainder of the game, with Town having a much higher level of possession and control.
The key change was that Ipswich pressed even higher, forcing Fulham to go long, resulting in Town quickly regaining the ball. There remains scope for improvement in the decision-making execution in the final third, but this should develop as the season progresses.
The Liam Delap show
It was an excellent and complete all-around centre-forward display from Delap, who is already showing himself as a powerhouse at this level despite his age and lack of experience.
He opened the scoring by bursting through the Fulham defence and finishing with a thunderous strike that had too much venom for Leno to keep out.
Mid-week, his beautiful penalty against Wimbledon gave us a taste of Delap's ball-striking abilities.
His performance was not only about his goal; his ability to turn and burst away from defenders with power and pace was once again on display, and he is proving a real handful for established Premier League defenders.
His press was relentless throughout, and he put in a few strong challenges, some fair, some not! I would go as far as to say that it was up there with the best striker displays we have seen under Kieran McKenna, and he looks worth every penny.
Robust defensive displays
The new partnership of Greaves and Woolfenden is developing superbly.
Greaves's more aggressive approach and Woolfenden's more casual approach provide a nice balance. Both contributed to plenty of clearances, blocks, and interceptions and kept the lively Muniz quiet.
Despite the signing of O'Shea threatening his starting position, Woolfenden has looked comfortable at this level, and it is his shirt to lose.
After a few nervy moments in the first half, Tuanzebe showed his class, locking up Iwobi and making the most tackles in the game (4). Tuanzebe sometimes makes defending look like an art and is so nonchalant in his actions.
Good and Bad of Davis
We all know how brilliant Leif Davis is going forward; defensively, in the Championship and League One, he was generally strong.
However, there has been a massive step up in the quality of right-wingers he has faced in the Premier League: Salah, Savio, and Traore, who all have different profiles and offer serious threats.
This stifled Davis's attacking threat against Manchester City and Liverpool, as Ipswich struggled to get up the pitch and was pinned back defensively. However, against Fulham, we saw a lot more of the attacking Davis we know and love.
Davis was back holding the width of the left hand side and creating chances, including his first assist of the season for Delap's goal.
For Fulham's goal, Davis completely lost Traore in the box and had to get tighter to prevent him having the time to shoot. This was also the case in multiple one-v-ones, where Traore had the freedom to run down the line unchallenged and put in a few dangerous crosses.
This is a side of Davis's game that he will need to work on because, at this level, he is likely to be facing top-class wingers every week. However, like most of the team, his game should develop as the season goes on and he remains a key attacking outlet.
New signings integrating well
Given how little time the new signings have had to gel and pick up the patterns of play, it was an extremely positive showing. Six new signings, excluding Hutchinson, were in the starting 11, which is a big change considering the level of cohesion in the squad since League One.
Considering he only joined on Tuesday, Ogbene has been thrown into the deep end and showed today that he can swim. Although he lost Robinson for Fulham's goal, his general performance was pleasing. He was close to getting his first Town goal, following some smart build-up play from Delap and Szmodics.
Phillips looked off the pace against Wimbledon, and it took him a bit of time to grow into today's game. In the second half, he and Morsy took control of the midfield, and he was a major contributor to Town's intricate passing play.
Given his recent lack of football, patience will be needed with him. He still has plenty of higher gears to reach to get close to the levels we saw in Euro 2020.
Cajuste's performance off the bench was mixed. He attempted an early dummy and turn but lost the ball in a dangerous position that Fulham failed to capitalise on. However, he later made one superb driving run, which led to a Clarke shot. He always showed for the ball and looked extremely comfortable on it, suggesting he has significant potential at this level.
How should Town fans feel going into the international break?
Although Town failed to win today, despite their strong showing, they have shown enough at this early stage of the season to suggest that they will be highly competitive against teams likely to finish in the lower reaches of the division, particularly when playing at Portman Road.
The losses against Manchester City and Liverpool were expected, but Town showed up well in both matches and demonstrated high levels of resilience against City. This has clearly given the players confidence that they belong at this level, reinforced by today's display against Fulham.
The international break has come at an ideal time. It will allow the further integration of players who are not away on international duty, with more time on the training ground. It also gives Hirst, Broadhead, Burns, and Clarke more time to recover. McKenna confirmed Hirst and Broadhead will be returning soon, which will strengthen the attacking unit.
Next up
Town have a tough trip to the Amex on September 14th to face an unbeaten, new-look Brighton team that has picked up seven points so far. It will be another test against strong opposition with high ambitions for this campaign under new manager Fabian Hurzeler.
Player ratings:
Starting XI: Muric 7, Tuanzebe 7.5, Woolfenden 8, Greaves 7.5, Davis 7.5, Morsy 8, Phillips 7, Ogbene 7, Hutchinson 7.5, Szmodics 7, Delap 8.5 (MOTM)
Subs: Cajuste 6.5, Clarke 6, Al-Hamadi 6, Chaplin N/A
