Review: Ipswich Town 0-1 Fortuna Düsseldorf – Half-Time

Danny Schmidt’s fifth-minute goal has given Fortuna Düsseldorf a 1-0 half-time lead over the Blues at Portman Road.

New signings Aro Muric, Ben Johnson, Jacob Greaves and Liam Delap all started for the Blues for Fortuna’s first game at Portman Road and their first in England since 1956.

Muric was making his first appearance for the Blues in goal with Ben Johnson, playing his first game at Portman Road at right-back, with Leif Davis at left-back. Greaves, also making his first start for the Blues, and George Edmundson were at the centre of the defence.

Skipper Sam Morsy and Massimo Luongo were in the centre of midfield with Delap, also making his first start since joining the club, the central striker.

The three behind the ex-Manchester City man were Conor Chaplin, Wes Burns and Jack Taylor, with the former Peterborough man on the left, Chaplin in the centre and Burns on the right.

Absent from the squad were Omari Hutchinson, who also missed the Shakhtar game last week, apparently due to his workload being managed, Harry Clarke and Ali Al-Hamadi, who both underwent surgery earlier in the summer, Nathan Broadhead and Cameron Humphreys, who suffered knocks earlier in pre-season, and Axel Tuanzebe, who missed the Austria camp for personal reasons.

In blazing hot sun, the 2.Bundeslia team dominated the early stages and went in front via the game’s first real chance in the fifth minute, Isak Johannesson crossing from the left and Schmidt heading down and across Muric and into the net at the back post.

Town looked to get back in the game quickly and on seven Morsy put a ball over the top for Delap, but the £15 million signing’s first-time effort was too close to keeper Florian Kastenmeier.

On 12, Davis overhit a cross from the left from a good Edmundson pass, then Fortuna broke and Felix Klaus was found in space on the right of the box but Muric did well to save his low effort down to his right. Meanwhile, Burns and goalscorer Schmidt had collided accidentally off the ball but both stayed on after treatment.

Fortuna continued to see most of the ball but with neither side creating another opportunity before a drinks break on the half hour with the temperature very hot.

As the players returned, Burns was swapped for Marcus Harness, the Welshman having suffered his earlier collision.

Harness was immediately into the action, skinning Emmanuel Iyoha on the right of the box, cutting in and clipping a cross to the far post where Taylor headed goalwards and Kastenmeier tipped over.

From the resultant corner, the keeper made another save, this time from a Greaves header.

In the 41st minute, Chaplin slid a pass in for Delap on the right of the box but a defender got in a toe as the striker shot and the ball deflected easily through to Kastenmeier.

In the first of two minutes of added-on time, Harness caught out Iyoha as they chased a ball which looked set to beat them to the byline, the former Portsmouth man slipping it between the Fortuna man’s legs and taking it into the area, but the sub’s low cross was too close to Kastenmeier.

That was the final action of a half in which the visitors had had the better of it overall and led through their early goal.

As was the case against Shakhtar last week, the Blues had long periods without the ball but without the opposition unable to create too many chances.

At the other end, the Blues had threatened on a few occasions with Taylor and Greaves going closest with their headers, while Davis hadn’t found his range with his crossing, despite having been played into decent positions on a few occasions.

Town: Muric, Johnson, Davis, Edmundson, Greaves, Morsy (c), Luongo, Burns (Harness 30), Taylor, Chaplin, Delap. Subs: Walton, Woolfenden, Burgess, Baggott, F Barbrook, Ayinde, Ladapo, Hirst.

Fortuna: Kastenmeier, Hoffmann (c), Tanaka, Johannesson, Klaus, Oberdorf, Iyoha, Schmidt, Appelkamp, Zimmermann, Sobottka. Subs: Kwasigroch, Schock, Quarshie, Niemiec, Roßmann, Jastrzembski, De Wijs, Manu, Affo, Suso. Referee: Josh Smith (Lincolnshire).