You will have to go back to December 2002 for the last time that an Ipswich Town vs Liverpool game was staged. That was an EFL Cup outing which ended in a 1 – 1 draw but the Reds were given the win.

In May of the same year was the last time that both clubs met in the top flight and Liverpool won. Since that season, the Tractor Boys have not made an appearance in the Premier League.

Up steps rookie manager Kieran McKenna who took them from the third tier of English football (the EFL League One) to the Premier League in just three seasons while playing football that many have likened to big clubs. Ipswich, upon securing promotion to the Premier League in the 2023/24 season, became only the second team in England football history to secure back-to-back promotions after Southampton.

The Tractor Boys are here to stay, but first, they must tell Liverpool that.

Arne Slot has a lot riding on him, especially after Jürgen Klopp’s wonders opened the fans’ eyes to.

Keep reading for match ticket information, match previews, team news and predictions on the match’s outcome.

Ticket information

Ipswich vs Liverpool tickets are one of the fastest selling for the opening day of the 2024/25 Premier League season. The match feels like a never-before-seen one, hence the rush to secure tickets by fans.

Ipswich Town tickets for the match are available on their website. As the home team, they have more ticket allocations, which means that Liverpool fans who will be travelling from Merseyside will have to get the limited tickets available for them. This leaves tourist fans at a disadvantage.

This disadvantage would be a problem if ticket reselling platforms like seatsnet.com did not exist. On these platforms, fans and organisations in possession of tickets they want to do away with, link up with other fans to exchange their tickets for money. They provide an option which clubs do not.

It is important to note that tickets sell out fast on reselling platforms too.

Team news

Ipswich Town are acting like the typical newly-promoted team; signing all they can sign as they prepare for the challenge of England’s top flight.

They were lucky to keep McKenna for their return season thanks to Brighton and Hove Albion, Manchester United and Chelsea all choosing different options for their dugouts. Since then, they have gone on to sign Omari Hutchinson (forward), Jacob Greaves (centreback), Liam Delap (striker) and Ben Johnson (right-back). There are more transfers in their future, but for now, McKenna will work with these names in pre-season as they plan for Liverpool.

The Reds, on the other hand, are not in the market for any players, which is something that has worried their fans.

Arne Slot has begun working at the club and is planning his squad for the 2024/25 season but there are no signings in sight. A few names have been mentioned: Dani Olmo, Nico Williams and Marc Guehi. However, they’re just rumours with no substance to them.

The biggest news coming out of Liverpool is that the club are offering Virgil Van Dijk to Atlético de Madrid. There is also no substance to this report, but it would be a big issue for Slot to find a competent replacement for his club’s captain so suddenly.

Here is how we expect both sides to line up:

Ipswich Town: Walton; Davis, Burgess, Woolfenden, Tuanzebe; Morsy, Luongo; Hutchinson, Chaplin, Bruns; Hirst.

Liverpool: Alisson; Robertson, Van Dijk, Konaté, Alexander-Arnold; Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Elliott; Diaz, Nuñez, Salah.

Match preview

This is a bittersweet match for Liverpool fans because it’s the first match in nine years without the smiling face of Jürgen Klopp.

The German’s infectious energy was part of the Reds’ matchday culture. At away matches the fans have come to expect his fist bump salute greetings before and after the game, especially when they win. Now, they will be starting with Slot, whose enthusiasm levels aren’t known yet. The fans will be watching with bated breath and ready to form opinions based on what the Dutchman puts out against the newly promoted side with the Erik ten Hag example fresh in their minds.

Ipswich, on the other hand, are looking to banish the ghosts of their 2001/02 season. The Tractor Boys finished 18th that year because they failed to get off to a good start. The fans may not be expecting them to beat Liverpool, but they would very much like not to see a whitewashing – the kind that they received from the Reds in that unfortunate season.

A lack of transfer business at Anfield makes it hard to predict what Liverpool will look like and play like ahead of their trip to Portman Road. The same can be said for the hosts as they are still workshopping their squad ahead of their first Premier League game in over two decades.

Slot’s biggest bother will be his defence. The Reds looked leaky defensively towards the end of last season but one can blame the tactics for that issue. Ipswich failed to score in only six games in last season’s EFL Championships, which means that the new Dutchman at Liverpool will best be served to find a solution to those issues which caused the Reds to finish in third despite leading the league for so many weeks.

Prediction

Ipswich Town vs Liverpool is an exciting matchup that pits two Premier League newcomers against each other. It is a sign of the evolution of the times.

Fans and neutrals will be able to watch the game on TNT Sports 1 in the UK which means that there will be more tickets available for tourist fans to buy on seatsnet.com.

Ipswich are a bold team under McKenna. They won’t be afraid to attack Liverpool, which means that the game will be fiercely contested. The Tractor Boys will not be able to do much, however.

Ipswich Town 0 – 2 Liverpool