Game Week 32 Predictions: Chelsea must beat Ipswich

Chelsea aim to bounce back vs Ipswich at Stamford Bridge as both sides chase key points—Blues fight for top five, Tractor Boys fight for survival.

Ipswich can hurt Chelsea's ambition to finish in Champions League places, the Blues cannot afford to lose this game. (Photo credit: Sporting News)

 Chelsea vs Ipswich Town

Stamford Bridge Stadium

2:00pm

There’s no reason for Chelsea to deprioritise this fixture; they enjoyed a healthy 3-0 success away at Warsaw on Thursday and can relax ahead of the second leg in London this week.

Last weekend in the league, Enzo Maresca rested a lot of first-team players, including Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson, which led them to a poor outing against Brentford; a win in that game would have made them firm favourites for the fourth spot, but now they’re completely out of the top five.

With fifth being confirmed to be enough for Champions League football for next season, it’s easier to keep things together while still fighting to win the Conference League; however, with Fiorentina and Real Betis pulling their weights in the competition, Chelsea can’t take things for granted on that front.

Ipswich Town’s journey back to the Championship has already begun; losing at home from a winning position in a relegation six-pointer against Wolves all but confirmed their doom. For the second year running, the three newly promoted sides are going down right at the first time of asking.

With Southampton’s relegation already confirmed last weekend, the point Leicester City registered at Brighton didn’t do much to help their cause, as they’re still fourteen points off the safety spot with only six left for them to play; their relegation could be confirmed as early as next weekend.

Chelsea lost to Ipswich Town in the reverse fixture; it was against bookmakers’ predictions, and it’s another opportunity for the Tractor Boys to delay their day of destruction, at least for another weekend, so Chelsea must be wary of their unpredictability.

Ipswich Town have that spark in them, but they lack consistency and concentration. They were firmly in control last weekend against Wolves, but they slept and allowed their visitors back into the game; they can’t afford that against the Blues.

Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana are both unavailable for this one, but everyone else is good to go, depending on what Enzo Maresca decides to do with the starting lineup. Squad management is the key thing right now, but fighting for the top five spot is the new goal.

Ipswich will miss Omari Hutchinson, as he won’t be able to face his former side, while Conor Townsend and goalkeeper Arijanet Muric would not feature due to his lingering shoulder problems. Kieran McKenna has everyone else available to face the Blues.

Both sides have reasons to go for this; we know the Tractor Boys work hard and can be relentless, but they have errors in them. Will Chelsea punish them? The likes of Chris Nkunku and Palmer have blown hot and cold this season; is this the game where they would rediscover their sparks?

Verdict: Chelsea to win.