BBC NEWS: Has Jacob Greaves’ move from Hull City to Ipswich Town gone as planned thus far?
Hull City’s transfer window was extremely difficult for fans to bear after the club failed to reach the Championship Play-Offs previous season.
It was a summer marked by the departures of high-profile players such as Jaden Philogene and Ozan Tufan, but the transfer of Jacob Greaves to Ipswich Town may have had the most impact on the Tigers.
The Premier League team bought the center-back for £15 million, with a possible increase to £18 million with add-ons, after an excellent 2023/24 season for Hull.
Greaves appeared in 43 of the Tigers’ 46 Championship games last season and missed only 12 across his four seasons at the MKM Stadium, assisting the team in their promotion from League One in 2020/21.
Now that Greaves’ time at Hull is complete, Football League World examines the success of his transfer.
Greaves has immediately became a constant starter for Ipswich Town.
Greaves has played every minute of Ipswich’s first seven Premier League games during their 22-year absence from the top tier.
However, the 24-year-old’s start at Portman Road has not been as promising, as the Tractor Boys have yet to win a league game, allowing 14 goals and netting only six.
West Ham United stopped a record of four consecutive draws on Saturday, beating Ipswich 4-1 at the London Stadium.
The East Anglian side made several dismal defensive blunders over the weekend, with Greaves frequently out of position as West Ham easily exploited the Ipswich backline.
Nonetheless, at such a young age, he still has plenty of time to adapt to the Premier League and begin to assist his team retain clean sheets in an effort to escape relegation.
| Jacob Greaves Ipswich Town Premier League Stats (FotMob)* | |
|---|---|
| Games Played (Starts) | 7 (7) |
| Goals | 0 |
| Yellow Cards (Red Cards) | 1 (0) |
| Tackles Won | 6 |
| Duels Won | 42 |
| Aerial Duels Won | 21 |
| Interceptions | 8 |
| Pass Accuracy | 89.3% |
| *Stats correct as of 8/10/2024 | |
It’s too early to say if the relocation has gone as planned.
Despite being narrowly above the relegation zone, Ipswich have faced some strong opponents in their opening seven games, facing four of the top six and drawing with both Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion.
Their other two points came from draws with Fulham and Southampton, with Sam Morsy’s last-minute header against the Saints securing a point at St. Mary’s Stadium in September.
Greaves had the most difficult start to life at Portman Road he could have wished for, as Liverpool made the long journey in early August, grabbing all three points in a 2-0 win before Ipswich flew to play Manchester City in a 4-1 defeat only a week later.
With some of their most tough matches in the first half of the season behind them, the Tractor Boys and Greaves will be expecting for a relief in games against Everton, Brentford, and Leicester City after the international break.
Positive results against these opponents will demonstrate to the rest of the league that they are more than capable of contending, and keeping clean sheets will boost Greaves’ and the rest of his defence’s confidence going ahead.
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