Ipswich Town have finally picked up their first Premier League win of the season, but nobody would have anticipated it would come away at Tottenham Hotspur, who had just toppled Aston Villa 4-1 prior to this showdown with the winless Tractor Boys.
Yet, complacency must have seeped in from the hosts and the Suffolk side took advantage, with Kieran McKenna labelling the victory as a “special” one after the dust had settled on the important win, as his team now have three points next to their name at the 11th attempt.
Both Liam Delap and Sammie Szmodics were crucial up top for the visitors in hunting down this unexpected win, as the electric attacking pair traded goals to be the main heroes on the day.
Delap & Szmodics' important goals
Delap’s strike away at Spurs on Sunday means the former Manchester City striker is up to six goals for the season now from 11 Premier League contests, with his instinctive finish in North London making it 2-0 on the day.
Whilst the 21-year-old was in the right place at the right time, Szmodics’ opener was far more stylish than showing off his pouncer-like ability under pressure, as the ex-Blackburn Rovers man acrobatically gave his side the lead with an overhead kick after Delap had headed into his path.
Ipswich did then have to ride it out, as Ange Postecoglou’s side threatened a comeback courtesy of a second half strike from Rodrigo Bentancur, but the Tractor Boys defence just about managed to stand firm and a first coveted win became a reality.
Amazingly, between the two of them, Delap and Szmodics only amassed a slender 51 touches, but their crucial contributions ensured the three points would be travelling back to Portman Road.
But, there were other standout performers in the attacking positions away from just the goalscorers, as Omari Hutchinson constantly drove his rejuvenated team forward.
Hutchinson's performance in numbers
Struggling in patches this season playing in a central attacking midfield role, the ex-Chelsea forward shone from this problem area in North London, with the Spurs defenders finding it hard to keep tabs on him.
Across the course of the 90 minutes, Hutchinson attempted a staggering eight dribbles in a bid to always create an opening for his team, with five of those being successfully completed.
Minutes played
90
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
56
Accurate passes
23/26 (88%)
Key passes
1
Shots
1
Successful dribbles
5/8
Total duels won
12/23
Fouled
4x
Going in for a mammoth 23 duels across the clash too, with 12 of them seeing Hutchinson come out on top, the 21-year-old very much operated as a lively presence for McKenna’s men all afternoon, keeping up the energy levels to ensure a much-needed win was forthcoming.
Spurs supporters would have been glad to see the back of the ex-Chelsea attacker come full-time no doubt, with Hutchinson winning himself four fouls as a tenacious figure for the visitors.
Rewarded with the Man of the Match honour and an 9/10 rating post-match by East Anglian Daily Times journalist Alex Jones, the tireless Tractor Boys number 20 will hope he has made that number ten role his own now after such a sharp showing, despite the majority of his heroics last campaign in the Championship coming from down the flanks.
Still, McKenna has clear faith in Hutchinson from this position and it more than paid off on Sunday, as the 21-year-old played a starring role in Ipswich’s jubilant first win of the top-flight campaign.
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