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– Norwich have not lost at home since November
– Ipswich have won just one of their four trips to current top six sides
– Recommended bet: Norwich to win
The East Anglian derby takes centre stage in the early kick-off on Saturday and the Canaries could produce another twist in the Championship title race by taking all three points against their bitter rivals, who lead the division by just one point.
Team news
David Wagner will continue to be without the injured trio of Dimitris Giannoulis, Jakob Sorensen and Onel Hernandez, with the latter expected to be out for the rest of the season with a broken foot.
However, there could be some good news up front with striker Jon Rowe close to full fitness after a spell out with a hamstring issue and could feature in some capacity on Saturday.
Kieran McKenna has no fresh injury or suspension concerns affecting his squad going into this crucial derby encounter and will not be expected to tinker with his side too much from their 3-2 win over Southampton last time out.
Matchwinner Jeremy Sarmiento could keep his place in the centre of the midfield, while the likes of Leif Davis and Omari Hutchinson will be expected to start down the left hand side.
The stats
Norwich boast the third best home record in the league (44 points) – only Leeds (52) and Ipswich (49) have better records.
The Canaries are on a 13 game unbeaten streak at Carrow Road, winning each of their last seven.
The reverse fixture at Portman Road in December ended all-square, finishing 2-2.
No side has scored more goals in the Championship this season than Ipswich with 84.
Only Leicester have taken more points away from home in the division than the Tractor Boys (38).
However, Ipswich last claimed victory at Carrow Road in 2006, while their last derby day win came in 2009.
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Prediction
This has the makings of a high-scoring encounter but Norwich’s recent dominance in front of their own fans could put them in good stead to take all three points in the latest Old Farm derby.
Victories over fellow play-off hopefuls West Brom and Coventry in 2024 have helped the Canaries surge into the top six and, while a defeat would not see them drop out of the promotion picture, it would almost certainly see their four point buffer cut down in some capacity.
Ipswich have a habit of producing late goals to salvage points and will be expected to continue their brilliant goalscoring run on Saturday.
However, their record when playing at clubs currently in the top six does not make for satisfying viewing – with the Tractor Boys failing to win at Leicester (1-1), Leeds (4-0) and West Brom (2-0).
Another winless trip could be in store for McKenna’s men in the derby and, after failing to make home advantage count in the reverse fixture, Ipswich could be in line to relinquish their slender lead at the top of the table with a defeat here before Leicester and Leeds get their games underway at 3pm.
