Ipswich Town: What's been said about the Championship promotion run-in

The competition is tough. There are just nine games remaining for Leicester City and Leeds United, while fellow automatic promotion contenders Southampton have a game in hand on the three teams above them. The four sides are separated by just nine points, meaning that everyone’s feeling the pressure.

We all know that Kieran McKenna is staying laser-focused on the task at hand, but how are the other managers coping? Are they confident that they can stay the course, or are doubts starting to creep in?

Here’s what they’ve said heading into the run-in.

Enzo Maresca's side have been top of the league since September 23rd (Image: PA)

Enzo Maresca – Leicester City

Is pressure starting to build on Leicester?

Boasting a 12-point lead on the chasing pack as recently as Valentine’s Day, many people assumed that their march to the league title was a foregone conclusion. They now sit just three points ahead of Leeds and four ahead of Ipswich, meaning that the top-two battle is well and truly on.

Their form has clearly dipped with one win, one draw and three defeats in their last five league games. They came from behind to draw 2-2 with Hull City on Saturday, and Maresca was quick to point out some key refereeing decisions that went against his side.

Nonetheless, the Italian has been keen to highlight the positives of his side’s season - of which there are many - regardless of how things have gone in the last few weeks.

“It’s fantastic,” he said. “Since we started, you are always there in press conferences, and I’ve always said the same since we started. What they have done is not normal.

“When we had 10 points (more), it was not normal. This is a long race. Now we have four points more and we see. We are very happy where we are.

“We move on to next weekend, go back to the drawing board and get ready for the FA Cup. And then after the international break, we'll come back firing. We've done a lot of travelling now over the last week of two difficult away trips and it will be nice to get a week to recover.”

On top of criticisms of Maresca’s style of play, there’s reportedly a points deduction hanging over them for the start of next season unless they make significant funds from sales over the summer. The manager knows that he can’t focus on that right now, but the mood at the King Power Stadium has certainly changed.

They face a trip to Chelsea in the last eight of the FA Cup this Sunday (12.45pm ko).

Daniel Farke won the Championship Manager of the Month award in January and February (Image: PA)

Daniel Farke – Leeds United

This weekend, Leeds have the chance to oust Leicester off top spot in the Championship table for the first time since mid-September.

To do that, they’ll need to beat Millwall at Elland Road by two or more goals. That would see them move level on points with the Foxes but ahead on goal difference, with Maresca’s men not in league action.

It’s not a huge surprise. The Whites are unbeaten in Championship action this calendar year, having won 11 and drawn one of their 12 games since New Year’s Day.

They won every single match in February, which saw Daniel Farke lift the Manager of the Month award for the second time in a row.

“Once again, throughout February, we managed to keep up our really good start to 2024 and I can only give compliments to my players and staff,” he said.

“To win nine consecutive games over January and February in the Championship was a real collective effort and required huge dedication from everyone.

“Naturally, it is our aim to continue in a similar manner between now and the end of the season. We want to win as many games as possible.”

Since then, their nine-match winning run was broken in a 1-1 draw against Huddersfield Town, but they’ve returned to second place with wins against Stoke City and Sheffield Wednesday.

Russell Martin's men have a game in hand on the three teams above them (Image: PA)

Russell Martin - Southampton

Southampton have a lot of ground to make up on the teams above them. Their 25-match unbeaten run was shattered by Bristol City midway through last month, and they were subsequently beaten by Millwall and Hull City before being dumped out of the FA Cup by Liverpool.

They were at risk of falling out of the automatic promotion picture heading into March, and the odds of them leapfrogging two teams above them in the table seems slim. They scored deep into stoppage time to win 4-3 away at Birmingham before beating off-form Sunderland 4-2 at St. Mary’s. Neither performance was overly convincing.

Russell Martin knows that his side can score goals, but limiting opponents seems to be much harder for them.

“We have given away few real chances, but the goals we conceded haven’t been good enough,” he said.

“It’s been moments. We have to stop that. We have spoken about it as a group and the players understand.

“Janny B [Bednarek] has been so frustrated at them. After the game, he and Jack chat and make sure the players are really clear about what needs to happen to move forward.

“We will definitely improve again in that area. We have shown that we can be the team that has both sides of the game for sure.

“There are a few key principles that we need to focus on and we have done that for sure. Now we need to put that out on the pitch.”

With games against all three sides above them in the table to come, the run-in will undoubtedly define Southampton’s season.