Defence problems could hinder the Tractor Boys’ push for promotion in the last few months of the season.
The Millers are renowned for their disastrous away form in the Championship, with just four draws from their 16 matches on the road this season, but they came so close to making it five against the Tractor Boys.
Tom Eaves gave the visitors the lead, and after just 30 minutes, Kieran McKenna’s team appeared to be invincible thanks to braces from Wes Burns on either side of Kieffer Moore’s effort.
However, the Suffolk team found it difficult to hold onto their lead against the lowest team in the league. Hakeem Odoffin pulled one back on the hour mark, and Cafu’s panenka penalty in injury time levelled the score.
A minute later, Hutchinson, on loan from Chelsea, saved his team’s blushes with the winner, but their defence is so weak that it allowed the visitors to score three goals away from home in a Championship game for the first time since January 2021.
Tractor Boys’ defence may prove to be their downfall in the promotion battle.
As a matter of fact, according to FotMob, the Millers scored 1.71 xG (expected goals) in the match on Tuesday, which is concerning for a team hoping to maintain its lead in the Championship table.
In contrast, Leeds United and Southampton, who are vying for promotion, allowed Rotherham to score just 0.30 and 0.32 points, respectively, and both teams easily prevailed.
The game at Portman Road extended a concerning trend for Town, who have now conceded 14 goals in their last nine competition games, including two against sixth-tier Maidstone United in their humiliating FA Cup loss at the end of January. Town’s defence could start to impede any realistic promotion push this year. They have only managed one clean sheet in their previous nine games overall, which came in a 4-0 victory over troubled Millwall last week.
The League One runners-up from the previous campaign are off to a great start this year, having only been surpassed by current leaders Leicester City. It is the second-best start to a Championship season ever.
They were comfortably positioned in second place for automatic promotion after collecting 48 points from their first 20 league games. However, a change in performance saw Southampton and Leeds United reduce the gap, with the latter moving into the top two on goal difference before the weekend.
While the Tractor Boys bolstered their attacking ranks in January with the additions of Moore from AFC Bournemouth, Ali Al-Hamadi from AFC Wimbledon and Jeremy Sarmiento from Brighton and Hove Albion, it is at the back where recruits should have been added too.
Rumours were circulating about a January move from Wigan Athletic’s Charlie Hughes, with the England under-20’s international impressing for the Latics in League One this season.
The defender’s poise under pressure, deft passing skills, and sturdy frame would have made him an ideal fit for Kieran McKenna’s attacking philosophy.
Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess are starting to show signs of weariness at the core of the backline, suggesting that the Tractor Boys will pay a heavy price for their future miscalculation.
Although Leif Davis and Harry Clarke have garnered a lot of praise for their goal-scoring prowess this season, a little more equilibrium between attack and defence would help the team perform better.
Town will next play a string of games against clubs ranked 12th and lower. Their next major test is a home matchup with promotion-chasing Southampton on April 1.
With just four 1-0 wins this season, it’s time to find out what they truly are made of and whether they can adjust their system to get results. Perhaps McKenna should change his strategies to shut up shop at the back in an attempt to build a more reliable and stable team.
