Ipswich 1 Coventry 2

“Football is a simple game”- So said Bill Shankly some years ago. Sometimes, amidst all the tactical organisation, it is the most basic of elements which define a match.
Ipswichs loss to Coventry was defined simply by the ability of either side to head a football at each end of the pitch. Whilst Coventrys attack was spearheaded by the 6’4” Clive Platt, Ipswichs lone forward was 5’8” Jason Scotland. To swap the two players would have probably also swapped the scoreline.
The first half was dominated by Platt’s aerial strengths, as Town struggled to cope with the former Colchester mans height. Whilst it was Platt himself who opened the scoring, he proved a handful for the normally aerially adept Gareth McAuley throughout the half. The half-time whistle allowed Ipswich to escape to the sanctuary of the dressing room, fortunate that the scoreline only left them trailing by a single goal.
Speaking to the BBC, Roy Keane was unimpressed with the first half performance, with his side again failing to find the net in the opening half, something which has still only occurred once so far this season.
“We have been slow getting into games. I was pleased to go in at 1-0 at half-time. We couldn’t have been any worse (in the second half) and we weren’t”.
Whilst Keanes team were much improved in the 2nd half, with the addition of Connor Wickham providing much needed support for Scotland, the final delivery was not reflective of the large amounts of possession which often preceded it.
Keane commented “We were giving too many long balls to Jason. In fairness to him, thats probably not his strength. Possession won’t win you football matches, but we got into good areas in the second half, wide positions on the edge of the box where you need to be inventive. We just need that bit of quality sometimes, someone with that bit of composure when it drops to them to think ‘this is the right decision, this is the right pass’. Today we picked the wrong one too many times”.
Jason Scotland will have found the match a frustrating experience on varying levels. He spent much of the first half attempting to win headers and provide lay-offs for a largely non-existant support. Grant Leadbitter was pushed into an unfamiliar supporting role as the central midfielder with license to attack, whereas the twin threats of Andros Townsend and Carlos Edwards were used to stretch the play out, being tied far closer to the touchline than has been customary in previous matches.
With the introduction of Wickham, Scotland found he had the support he needed, yet more often than not the final ball into the box required him to attack it with his head, rather than foot. As Platt became largely redundant in a second half in which Coventry saw very little of the ball, he must have wondered how he would have faired with the type of service the home side were providing for their own frontmen.
Yet, with the ball at his feet, Scotland becomes explosive. Adding to the rasping finish which provided Towns goal, Scotland was the player who gave Westwood in the Coventry goal the opportunities to excel with two acrobatic second half saves. It also marked only the 2nd occasion, and the first in five matches, that Scotland has remained on the pitch for the duration of the game, indicating that not only is the player demonstrating sharpness in the penalty box, but also that his physical sharpness is clearly improving with the passing weeks.
With the weaknesses in Towns performance being focussed around the ammunition provided to the forwards, so attention is drawn to the midfielders who started the game. Whilst Coventrys approach wasn’t entirely limited to an aerial threat- they appear more expansive than previous Aidy Boothroyd sides- the success which Platt enjoyed made Luke Hyams role in front of the back four largely something of a luxury. It was therefore of little surprise that Hyam was the player to be sacrificed for the second half change of formation.
Jake Livermore failed to enjoy the kind of afternoon which he had against Leeds United in the previous match, only finding a route into the game in the 2nd half, whilst Grant Leadbitter looks to be a pale shadow of the player who dominated the midfield this time last year. Some of this can be put down to ever-changing roles in the side, but his play is stilted and reflective of a player low on confidence.
With a game away to high-flying Watford on Tuesday evening, Keane has the opportunity to make amends quickly. With his captain David Norris on the bench on Saturday and the returning Jack Colback pushing for involvement, alternative options are clearly available. However, as many have remarked with the re-signing of Jack Colback, there remains a question mark as to whether the options available are actually able to offer an alternative approach.