'I expect them to climb the table' - Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna speaks highly of out-of-form Sheffield United
Sheffield United travel to Portman Road to take on Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich Town this Friday.
Blades boss Ruben Selles might have preferred a less troubling proposition than facing one of the pre-season favourites for automatic promotion as his struggling Sheffield United side returns to Championship action after the international break.
There aren’t many harder places to visit, on paper, than last season’s relegated Premier League side Ipswich, who gave a good account of themselves for the most part in their first season back in the top-flight in over two decades.
But the Ipswich boss believes that Sheffield United haven’t had the rub of the green so far this season, and they will rise up the table from their position at the bottom of the league.
Kieran McKenna on Sheffield United’s form this season
“They’ve had chances and most of their games have been tight. The margins are small,” McKenna said.
“I expect them to climb the table, just hopefully not this weekend.”
Sammie Szmodics doubtful for Blades match
Striker Sammie Szmodics is a doubt for Sheffield United’s opposition this Friday as he suffered an ankle injury on international duty for the Republic of Ireland.
The 29-year-old played 78 minutes of his nation’s game against Hungary and revealed after the match that he had to pull out of the squad due to a knock, so he missed a 2-1 defeat to Armenia.
In his pre-match press conference, McKenna gave an update on the forward’s recovery.
“He’s recovering, so we don’t know yet for Friday night,” the Ipswich boss said.
“He had some swelling in the ankle that he had surgery on in the summer after the game, so it would have been impossible for him to be involved for Ireland.
“He hasn’t been training with us yet, but he’s back doing some work with the rehabilitation coaches. We’ll make an assessment in the morning.
“He obviously hasn’t missed a lot of time, so it’s not impossible that he could play, but we’ll have to see how he recovers from the work he did today.”
Marcelino Nunez could make debut after £7.5m transfer from East Anglian rivals Norwich
A player who could help the Tractor Boys secure their first win of the Championship season could be new signing Marcelino Nunez, who arrived late in the window from arch rivals Norwich City.
Nunez crossed the East Anglian divide for £7.5m but was nursing an ankle injury on signing for his new club. But McKenna revealed the Chilean international could be set for his debut in front of his new home crowd against Sheffield United.
“Yeah, he trained from Monday onwards with the group this week,” McKenna said.
“He’s missed a few weeks, but he’s ready to be involved.
“He’s a high-quality player, an experienced player. He’s a player with real quality, and you can see the quality there. He’s definitely going to bring some good things to us.”