Ipswich Town vs Sunderland preview

England flag 2026/2027 Premier League, England
Portman Road Stadium Sat, 22 Aug - 2:00 PM
Premier League
Ipswich TownIPS
SunderlandSUN
KICKOFF : Sat, 22 Aug - 2:00 PM
Round 1 Regular Season

CONTEXT

In the 2026/2027 Premier League regular season, Ipswich Town welcome Sunderland to Portman Road Stadium for this league fixture. Ipswich Town currently occupy 18th position in the domestic table, while Sunderland lead the standings in first place. The visitors hold a commanding power score of 83.92 against the home side's 35.97, marking Sunderland as the stronger team by a 48-point margin. Recent form records remain unavailable for both clubs, with no details provided from their most recent matches. Set piece metrics and efficiency indicators show low confidence, relying on proxy data for analysis. This encounter highlights a clear disparity in current standing and underlying team strength between the two sides.

TL;DR

  • Structural: Ipswich Town sit 18th while Sunderland lead the table in 1st.
  • Form: Both teams enter without recent form records available.
  • Squad: Sunderland hold a significant power advantage of 48 points over Ipswich Town.
  • Efficiency: Efficiency metrics are not available for this fixture.
  • Transition: Transition play data remains unavailable at this stage.
  • Set pieces: Set piece analysis shows low confidence with proxy data used for both sides.
  • xVariable: xG data is not available for either team in this encounter.
  • Market: Ipswich Town 0% (Δ+0%) | Draw 0% (Δ+0%) | Sunderland 0% (Δ+0%).
No standings statistics available.
No head-to-head records found.
0.5+ goals: 85%
1.5+ goals: 70%
2.5+ goals: 50%
3.5+ goals: 25%
Confidence: High (≥8 matches)

Quality vs Volume

Home: xG 1.8, Shots 12, xG/Shot 0.15
Away: xG 1.5, Shots 14, xG/Shot 0.11

Open Play vs Set Play

Open Play: 65%
Set Play: 35%

Expected Points

TeamxPts
Home1.8
Away1.2
ℹ️ Methodology: Expected Goals (xG) measures shot quality
Jan 25 vs Team A
Feb 1 vs Team B
Feb 8 vs Team C
Ipswich Town G. O'Neil
G. O'Neil
VS
Sunderland R. Le Bris
R. Le Bris
0
Avg Points / Game (Last 100 Matches)
1.5
0 i
Avg Points / Game (Last 6 Matches)
1.33 i
Last 6 Opponents
Chelsea Rank: 89 W
Everton Rank: 87 W
Manchester United Rank: 92 D
Wolverhampton Wanderers Rank: 80 D
Nottingham Forest Rank: 88 L
Aston Villa Rank: 93 L
0
Head to Head (Wins - Draws - Losses)
0 - 0 - 0
0
No sidelined player data available.

Team Power Ranking

i
What is Power Ranking?
Power ranking is SportMonks' model-based team strength indicator. Historical input capped to 2 seasons.
35.97
83.92
0 (Weakest) 100 (Strongest)
Metric
Ipswich Town
Sunderland
Power Score
35.97
83.92
League Position
18
1
Global Rank
74
45

Form Analysis Opponent-Weighted

Line chart of recent results (points/trend). Friendlies excluded by default. Hover for opponent, result, xG/xGA and power ranking — based on last 6 matches.

–
vs
Ipswich Town — Opponent-weighted form score
Sunderland — Opponent-weighted form score
Win (3 pts) Draw (1 pt) Loss (0 pts) Ipswich Town Sunderland

STARTING XI - EXPECTED

Pitch
K. Scherpen
22 K. Scherpen
D. O'Shea
26 D. O'Shea
J. Greaves
24 J. Greaves
I. Diop
2 I. Diop
L. Davis
3 L. Davis
F. Morris Luís
16 F. Morris Luís
S. Lukić
6 S. Lukić
A. Issahaku
15 A. Issahaku
M. Nuñez
32 M. Nuñez
D. Maeda
12 D. Maeda
E. Correia da Silva
13 E. Correia da Silva

General Information

Date & Time
Aug 22, 2026, 02:00 PM
Competition
2026/2027 Premier League, England · Round 1 · Regular Season
Stadium
Portman Road Stadium
Capacity
29673
Pitch Surface
Grass
Weather
☀️ 12°C, Fair

Expected Lineup

Starting XI ▼

22
Kjell Scherpen
Kjell Scherpen Goalkeeper
5.81
13
Emersonn
Emersonn Centre Forward
6.77
6
Saša Lukić
Saša Lukić Defensive Midfield
6.89
3
Leif Davis
Leif Davis Left Back
6.89
24
Jacob Greaves
Jacob Greaves Right Back
6.91
2
Issa Diop
Issa Diop Left Back
6.65
16
Florentino
Florentino Defensive Midfield
6.71
26
Dara O'Shea
Dara O'Shea Right Back
7.55
32
Marcelino Núñez
Marcelino Núñez Attacking Midfield
7.24
12
Daizen Maeda
Daizen Maeda Left Wing
7.04
15
Issahaku Fatawu
Issahaku Fatawu Right Wing
6.96

Starting XI ▼

22
Robin Roefs
Robin Roefs Goalkeeper
6.94
9
Brian Brobbey
Brian Brobbey Centre Forward
6.69
7
Chemsdine Talbi
Chemsdine Talbi Right Wing
6.63
13
Luke O'Nien
Luke O'Nien Right Back
6.5
5
Dan Ballard
Dan Ballard Left Back
6.88
17
Reinildo Mandava
Reinildo Mandava Left Back
6.73
27
Noah Sadiki
Noah Sadiki Defensive Midfield
6.71
28
Enzo Le Fée
Enzo Le Fée Attacking Midfield
7.02
32
Trai Hume
Trai Hume Right Back
6.81
34
Granit Xhaka
Granit Xhaka Defensive Midfield
7.13
10
Nilson Angulo
Nilson Angulo Left Wing
6.54

CONCLUSION

Sunderland arrive at Portman Road as the clear frontrunners given their top position and substantial power edge. Ipswich Town will look to leverage home support to bridge the gap in quality and standing. With limited recent form data available, both sides face uncertainty in predicting immediate momentum. The absence of detailed efficiency and set piece insights adds further layers to the tactical preparation required. Sunderland's overall superiority suggests they will control proceedings, yet Ipswich can draw on familiar surroundings to mount resistance. This league clash offers a test of current hierarchy within the division.