Ipswich Town 2-2 Aston Villa: Delap brace enough to salvage a point at Portman Road.

Ipswich secured their fourth point of the Premier League season thanks to a brace from Liam Delap, denying Unai Emery and Aston

Villa the chance to move up to second place in the standings.

In the end, a draw reflects a fair result that neither side will be completely content with. It was a wild match in which both sides led at

different periods.

As it happened

Ipswich, who had been searching for their first Premier League victory since 2002, may have been overly hopeful to think it would

come against Champions League opponents. Once again in fourth position, Aston Villa knew that victory would propel them up to

second place as they made their way to Portman Road. However, they wouldn’t get their way all by themselves because of Kieran

McKenna’s side.

The first eight minutes saw very little ball play from Unai Emery’s team, but that was exactly how you would expect it to go. Their

initial attack was sufficient to open the scoring, even though they only had two touches in the attacking third during that period.

With everyone huddled around the perimeter of Aston Villa’s penalty box, captain Sam Morsy scored their first goal. It was a hopeful,

speculative shot that unintentionally bounced off his own colleague Omari Hutchinson in the box. Up until they attempted to clear the

ball, it appeared as though the visitors were no longer in danger.

It was a feeble effort. Straight, gentle, and low to Kalvin Phillips. Before cutting it back to Liam Delap in the middle, the former

Manchester City player played the ball to Jack Clarke down the lefthand side. After a single touch, the ball crept past Emiliano

Martínez and into the lower left corner, putting Ipswich in ahead.

However, that is not all that shocking. That was their third goal in the first fifteen minutes of the Premier League season and their

fourth overall. They’re proven to be experts at seizing the initiative early on; what follows may not be as productive.

For a while, at least, this game adhered to the same pattern. Everything was Villa after the goal. They had 64% of the possession in the

first half, and even though they weren’t completely in control—in fact, Emery might not have been quite happy with some degree of

space in the middle of the park—the next goal appeared to be almost destined to come from a white shirt.

It wasn’t very long. They would find their equalizer fifteen minutes in, which was uncannily similar to the first goal in that it resulted

from a botched clearance of its own. With a hint of fear, Jacob Greaves was the one who hacked the ball away from the byline this

time.

Rather, it found Morgan Rogers’ feet as though it were a pass meant only for him. After executing a swift one-two with Ollie Watkins,

the former Middlesbrough player had sufficient space to attempt his shot. He didn’t waste it either, skillfully placing the ball in the

lower left corner and setting up Arijanet Muric to score.

Villa were in complete control now. With the exception of Jack Clarke’s mishandled header in the eighteenth minute, Villa virtually

always had the ball. They were systematic and patient, not generating a lot of opportunities, but when the time came, there was going

to be no mistakes made.

This time, Watkins took the lead after helping to create the equalizer. After moving the ball to the right side, Leon Bailey curled a

stunning cross toward his striker. Watkins positioned himself between Axel Tuanzebe and Dara O’Shea, creating just enough space for

him to meet the cross and nod it precisely in the center of the net. Perhaps a little too eager, Muric quickly dived out of the way, and

Villa found themselves in front for the first time. As usual, nothing unusual.

However, Ipswich remained competitive towards the conclusion of the first half, keeping Martínez well and truly on his toes. He was

called upon to block a vicious half-volley from Kalvin Phillips before having to stretch out to stop Delap from scoring a definite goal

one on one. The Tractor Boys had a bright half-end, but nothing materialized.

When the second half rolled around, things had become much less exciting. The first goal of the half came during a flurry of fouls in

the middle of the pitch that smothered any chance of a run.

In a way, Villa displayed excellent game management. It was to their advantage that neither side was taking any chances. The aim was

to maintain the lead, score three points, and move up to second place in the table.

However, not all plans turn out as expected. Ipswich made sure to inform their opponents that they had not had a real chance since before the interval.

It was situated on the countertop. After seventy-two minutes, Omari Hutchinson passed Delap a quick, easy pass just inside the Villa

half. He completed the task, moving forward while defenders tried to catch up as fast as they could, all the while keeping his focus on

one thing. After entering the zone, he just had Diego Carlos, the last guy, to beat—one stride over.

They had to choose between riding their momentum to try to take all three of the points that were on offer today or sitting and playing

for their fourth point of the season.

But in the end, they didn’t really belong anywhere. Chances were few and far between between their equalizer and the game’s

conclusion, with Villa holding the ball for extended periods of time and Ipswich attempting in vain to mount a desperate

counterattack. Initially, it was Ross Barkley who attempted a hopeful strike that was too central to cause any issue for Muric. Later,

Jack Taylor skillfully curled an attempt into Martínez’s appreciative hands. And so it ended, with the rewards being divided after a

most interesting battle.

What was fair was a draw. Ipswich held on admirably, but they’ll have to wait another week to try again for their first Premier League

victory in more than 20 years.

Aston Villa will be frustrated because they missed a great chance to stay ahead of Liverpool in the standings. They’ll have to make do

with sixth for the time being, but there’s still plenty of time to climb.

The lineups

IPS: Muric; Davis, Greaves, O’Shea, Tuanzebe; Phillips, Morsy, Hutchinson; Clarke, Delap, Ogbene

AVL: Martínez; Digne, Torres, Carlos, Konsa; Tielemans, Onana, Rogers; Ramsey, Watkins, Bailey

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