Preview: Ipswich Town vs. Rotherham United - prediction, team news, lineups

The Tractor Boys sit in fourth position in the Championship standings, while the visitors to Portman Road are cut adrift at the bottom of the table.

Match preview

With Ipswich having struggled for wins either side of the turn of the year and losing to non-league Maidstone United in the FA Cup, Kieran McKenna may have started to have doubts about his squad.

However, Ipswich deserve credit for the way in which they have bounced back to posting just one win in nine Championship fixtures, their last-gasp leveller against West Bromwich Albion seemingly acting as the catalyst.

In back-to-back away fixtures against Millwall and Swansea City, the Tractor Boys have scored six goals in posting 4-0 and 2-1 victories respectively.

The success over the latter was made harder than it needed to be, yet it was another show of character as Ipswich made it nine away successes in 17 second-tier outings.

Closing the 12-point gap to leaders Leicester City remains Ipswich's goal, although moving level on points with second-placed Leeds United is the initial target for Tuesday night.

From Rotherham's perspective, it already feels like they are fighting a lost cause having failed to win any of their last eight matches in the Championship.

Although there have been improvements in recent defeats to Hull City and Watford, the Millers have lost four times in succession and may need to win at least nine of their remaining 14 games to have any chance of survival.

For a team that have not prevailed since beating Middlesbrough on Boxing Day, that appears unlikely, but Leam Richardson's side may relish the chance to play with the pressure all on their hosts on Tuesday.

Rotherham were also able to claim a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture back in November, providing them with the knowledge of gaining a result against opponents who have not overly changed since that encounter at the New York Stadium.

Ipswich Town Championship form:

W

D

L

D

W

W

Ipswich Town form (all competitions):

D

L

L

D

W

W

Rotherham United Championship form:

L

D

L

L

L

L

Team News

Although Ipswich have won successive fixtures, an unchanged starting lineup is not a given due to two away trips in the space of a few days.

Wes Burns and Jeremy Sarmiento are both in contention for recalls in the final third, while Lewis Travis is an option in the centre of the pitch.

Brandon Williams, Jack Taylor and George Hirst are all expected to miss out due to injury.

Richardson is likely to tinker with his Rotherham side, with Jordan Hugill and Tom Eaves both pushing for starts in attack.

At least one of Sam Clucas and Cafu may freshen up the midfield, but the likes of Cohen Bramall and Daniel Ayala remain on the sidelines.

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:

Hladky; Clarke, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Luongo; Burns, Chaplin, Sarmiento; Moore

Rotherham United possible starting lineup:

Johansson; Odoffin, Morrison, Humphreys; Kioso, Cafu, Tiehi, Revan; Rathbone; Hugill, Eaves

We say: Ipswich Town 3-0 Rotherham United

Although Rotherham have competed well in recent matches, facing Ipswich at Portman Road is a different challenge. We expect this to be one-way traffic and for the Tractor Boys to cruise to another important three points.

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