Ipswich Town: Are Tractor Boys better equipped for Premier League?

There is no doubt that McKenna had learned a lesson from Ipswich’s season in the Premier League, in only his third season as head coach.

One of the accusations that could be leveled against him was that he showed too much loyalty to players who had previously served him well.

The starting XI of the 2024-25 season, which they lost 2-0 against Liverpool at Portman Road, included six players who started the last League One match against Fleetwood Town just 15 months ago: Christian Walton, Luke Woolfenden, Leif Davis, Massimo Luongo, Wes Burns and Conor Chaplin.

Alongside Walton, Davis and Burns, striker George Hirst, who also played in the 2-2 draw at Fleetwood, is still in the current Ipswich squad.

There was a radical personnel change at Portman Road last summer when 11 new players were signed with the help of Premier League parachute money; these included Chilean playmaker Marcelino Nunez from regional rivals Norwich for £10 million.

The new-look squad took time to take shape – they failed to win any of their first four league games this season – and new squads were added in January with the arrival of Anis Mehmeti and Dan Neil.

They did not match the 2024 team’s total of 96 points, 28 wins or 92 goals, but this may be a reflection of the extra competitiveness of the Championship this year.

“The players have grown throughout the season; when you look at the last series, it was our eighth game in 26 days, three away games in a row, we faced a lot of challenges,” McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk.

“They stuck with it and you can never underestimate how difficult it is to get promoted to the Premier League. “It’s a fantastic achievement.

“To finish 15 games with one loss really shows the character of the group that has finally come together.”