Norwich vs Ipswich LIVE commentary: Rivals meet for crucial East Anglian derby – kick-off time, team news and talkSPORT coverage

Norwich meet bitter rivals Ipswich this Saturday afternoon in a crucial East Anglian derby, live exclusively on talkSPORT 2.

The Canaries will aim to dash the Tractor Boys’ promotion hopes while boosting their own chances of reaching the play-offs.

Kieran McKenna’s side are top of the Championship and have won their last three games, scoring deep into stoppage time to beat Southampton last time out.

They are six consecutive promotion matches away, but it is their biggest enemy who can play a major role in preventing that.

Norwich vs Ipswich: spoil the party?

Norwich will be keen to dent Ipswich’s title hopes.

They are unbeaten in their last 11 league matches against their rivals, having not lost an East Anglian derby since 2009.

To make matters even better, the Canaries haven’t lost a home derby since the 2005/06 season.

In home encounters, they have won four and drawn four of their last eight games, with history likely to motivate David Wagner’s side ahead of this clash.

It will also be music to the ears of Leeds and Leicester fans as they hope McKenna’s men are finally proven wrong.

If the Tractor Boys win, it will prove they have the resilience to go all the way and secure promotion to the Premier League.

4

Norwich vs Ipswich: team news

Norwich: Gunn, Stacey, Duffy, Gibson, McCallum, Nunez, McLean, Gabriel Sara, Barnes, Sainz, Sargent.

Submarines: Montoia, Aboh, Gibbs, Long, van Hooijdonk, Fassnacht, Batth, Fisher, Welch.

Ipswich: Hladky, Tuanzebe, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis, Morsy, Luongo, Broadhead, Chaplin, Giraud-Hutchinson, Moore.

Submarines: Walton, Clarke, Harness, Ball, Taylor, Al Hamadi, Jackson,
Sarmiento, Travis.

4

• Norwich have won each of their last seven league matches at Carrow Road; their longest run in the top two tiers of English football since a run of nine such victories in the second tier in November 2003.
• Ipswich’s 31 points from losing positions are more than any other team in the top four tiers this season, and the most by a Football League team since Manchester United in 2020-21 (also 31).

Norwich vs Ipswich: what was said?

Ipswich boss McKenna has spoken about the importance of winning this derby.

He said: “You can’t avoid the fact that some games grow more. It’s a derby.

“Almost all the boys live locally, while some come from the academy. There’s no escaping it: they know a game like this has extra meaning.

“But I think they’ve shown, in the face of that outside pressure in the past, that they can really, really well step up, time and time again.

“It’s special for the fans and what’s special for the fans is special for the players because that bond is so strong. We will be full of determination to make our fans proud.

“These are opportunities to savor. It’s a rivalry to savor. We know how important this is for both clubs.

“Some of the best experiences I’ve been a part of have been going to your rivals and getting a result in their stadium. There’s no better feeling than that.

“We’re really going to strive to make Saturday one of those.”

4

• Ipswich’s 26 league wins this season are already the most by a newly promoted team in a single second division season in England, along with Manchester City in 1999-00 and Southampton in 2011-12. Indeed, the Tractor Boys have won nine of their last 10 league matches (L1).

Norwich vs Ipswich: talkSPORT coverage

This Championship clash will take place on Saturday April 6.

Kick-off at Carrow Road is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.

talkSPORT 2 will have EXCLUSIVE live coverage of the game presented by Faye Carruthers.

Comments will come from Nigel Adderley and former England striker Dean Ashton.