How Kieran McKenna rebuilt Ipswich Town for immediate return to the Premier League | OneFootball

For the third time in his young coaching career, Kieran McKenna is on the verge of promotion.

A 2-2 draw away at Southampton knocked the hosts out of automatic promotion contention but heading into the final day of the Championship season, the advantage is with Ipswich.

The Tractor Boys are on 81, a point ahead of Millwall and two ahead of Middlesbrough, and face an on-the-beach QPR at Portman Road on Saturday. A win would seal an immediate return to the Premier League.

Waiting until the last day for promotion is a familiar feeling for Ipswich fans who were in the same position two years ago but the journey for the club’s two recent Premier League promotions has been very different.

Just two players who started the promotion-sealing game of 2023-24 started against Southampton last night, another was on the bench, but almost all of that team has departed.

The squad that McKenna guided first to promotion from League One and then the Championship at the first time of asking was one where the group was stronger than the individual.

Once promotion to the top flight was confirmed, that squad was strengthened not with Premier League-ready stars but players who would stick around beyond a possible relegation and make Ipswich a contender to come straight back.

The result was predictable. After a first half of the season in which Ipswich competed but fell short, their form and belief collapsed and they finished 19th.

Last summer saw even more upheaval, particularly through the exit door. Omari Hutchinson and Liam Delap both landed Premier League moves while the core of the promotion squads was allowed to depart.

Captain Sam Morsy, Nathan Broadhead, Luke Woolfenden, Massimo Luongo and Conor Chaplin all moved on. In their place came a group of players who had many predicting Ipswich would break the Championship points total.

While the 2023-24 promotion felt like a fairy tale being written in real time, there has been little of that magic this time round.

Ipswich were the biggest spenders last summer, although they still turned a profit thanks to the Delap and Hutchinson sales, and assembled a squad full of talent ready to compete for the league.

Football is not like playing FIFA though and Ipswich were slow starters. The club failed to win in their first five.

It took until November for back-to-back victories to be put together. McKenna’s team has spent just 28 days in the top two this season.

But this slow start came at a fortunate time for the Championship this season has been one where no team has grabbed the bull by the horns. Even Coventry’s tally of a potential 95 points would have only been good enough for third in the last two seasons.

And while Frank Lampard has squeezed every bit of performance out of his team, there is a feeling amongst Ipswich fans that this team is capable of so much more.

Defensively, they have been very good with the joint-best record in the league but it is up front that has caused the most frustration.

The loss of Delap, who performed well in the Ipswich system even if Chelsea fans would find that hard to believe, was key and Ipswich have struggled without an in-form number nine.

George Hirst is on 10 goals for the season but has looked a long way from the player he once was, while on-loan Como striker Ivan Azon cannot be blamed for a lack of effort but instead a lack of finishing ability.

Ipswich’s main goal threats have been Jack Clarke and Jaden Philogene but try as he might, McKenna has not found a way to get them both on the pitch at the same time with the pair favouring the left flank over the right.

The main problem for Ipswich has been an inability to break down a low-block, something that has frustrated them out of points all year.

The team missed the directness of Chaplin and the technical ability of Broadhead and Marcelino Nunez has only performed well in fits and spurts.

McKenna has also asked Leif Davis, who registered 18 assists in the previous promotion campaign, to cut inside more, which has reduced his output to just four this year.

It is an Ipswich team that is far from perfect, but if promotion is secured on Saturday, there will be few in Suffolk who care.

As for a potential Premier League return, undoubtedly the squad will need a lot of strengthening in the summer.

As any promoted Championship manager must do, McKenna has to find a way to turn his attack-minded side that is used to dominating games into one that can survive in matches where they are massive underdogs and so perhaps it is encouraging that they have been defensively strong this season.

While unlikely, McKenna may also be tempted by a move elsewhere if a stable Premier League club comes calling.

But a third promotion in four years has undoubtedly proved the Northern Irishman to be one of the best young managers in the country.