Alexander Isak (£9.0m) scored two early goals as Liverpool recorded their first win of the season at Portman Road.
Here are our Scout Notes, which feature data and screenshots from our new Match Centre.
ISAK AND GAKPO COMBINE
Isak struck twice in the opening nine minutes on Friday, setting the tone for what was a much improved display from Liverpool.
Rifling home from a tight angle, before rolling in a cool finish, there was a lot to like about the Sweden international’s performance, even if Ipswich Town ‘keeper Kjell Scherpen (£4.5m) should have done much better for both goals.
Isak actually had the ball in the back of the net for a third time, but was just offside from Florian Wirtz’s (£7.4m) pass.
“He’s a massive player for us. My demands will not be about the goals — he is fit and in good shape, so he is probably going to get those. My fights with him are about other stuff: how to help the team, what to do in some situations. But it’s good that he has already played two full games and got a very good amount of minutes and scored goals.
“Today, we were much better in our press. We want him to be in contact high, and then we can find him in good positions. When he is lower, it is going to be more difficult to find him, there are less spaces. So it’s a matter of collective effort and getting our No 9 in situations like he was in today.” – Andoni Iraola on Alexander Isak
Cody Gakpo (£7.1m) deserves a shout-out, too.
All three of Isak’s goals this season have been assisted by the Dutchman, who looked electric down his favoured left flank on Friday.
He even moved up front after Isak was substituted off just after the hour mark, perhaps with Wednesday’s Champions League encounter with Atletico Madrid in mind.
“I have no doubt with Cody. He has been very good all the pre-season, has started very well this season, producing numbers. Today again, after the two assists, he finishes [the game at] No 9 to help us close the game. I think it’s good to have Cody because he can play in the three positions up top and to have him in this place for this beginning of the season is good.
“Cody knows how much we value him, I think there is no doubt. I rate him very highly. I will demand from him, obviously, because there is also a strong competition for minutes because we have good players in those positions and it’s a matter of pushing each other. With Bradley [Barcola], with Rio [Ngumoha], with Victor [Munoz], it’s a matter that sometimes they will start, sometimes they come from the bench, sometimes they will not play. But this competition, I think is going to be good for all of them.” – Andoni Iraola on Cody Gakpo
BARCOLA “THREAT”
Bradley Barcola (£8.0m) made his Liverpool debut at Portman Road, when he appeared as a second-half substitute.
As far as debuts off the bench are concerned, it was all pretty positive, with lots of pacey wing play and direct running.
Clearly, there is much more to come from the French international.
“I think Bradley hadn’t played a single minute since the World Cup so we needed to be careful. I think he is training well, in a good place, and I think that he has helped us. Probably, we haven’t found him in a couple of situations where I think he was going against the ‘keeper, but we haven’t really seen his movements.
“And also he has had a very good counter, very good passing side that I think Cody finished, but we didn’t score. But he was always a threat, you know? When he carries the ball, I think you can feel this threat and I’m happy because I think 30 minutes is going to be good for his fitness, for his build-up, and we will continue because now we play a lot of games, so he will have a chance to play more.” – Andoni Iraola on Bradley Barcola
Wirtz meanwhile supplied a decent low cross for Isak’s disallowed goal, but he didn’t really do much else.
With only one assist in three matches, he suffered an overnight price drop.
ARAUJO AT RIGHT-BACK, NOT SZOBOSZLAI
Andoni Iraola made one change from the team that drew with Nottingham Forest last week, with Ronald Araujo (£5.4m) coming in for his first start of the season in place of Jeremie Frimpong (£5.5m).
Araujo started at right-back, so Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m) remained in the midfield pivot.
Overall, it was a much-improved defensive display and a rare clean sheet.
Having limited Ipswich to only 0.73 expected goals (xG), Araujo at right-back is surely the way forward for Liverpool.
Above: The xG was pretty much even on Friday, but the stats didn’t really tell the story. After Liverpool raced into an early 2-0 lead, they had another strike ruled out. They would have had a penalty too had Szoboszlai not been offside
Elsewhere, Jeremy Jacquet (£5.0m) had a few clumsy moments but, in a positive development, completed 90 minutes for the first time this season.
“I think for every centre back to play next to Virgil is a masterclass, a lesson. In this case Jeremy has had his first full game; his first two games he couldn’t finish them. He was tired. Today there was a moment in the second half I was in doubt, but I think he has to suffer, you know? Go through those periods so he can finish the game well, and slowly he can build his fitness levels.” – Andoni Iraola on Jeremy Jacquet
As for Szoboszlai, he had three long-range efforts saved by Scherpen, and if it weren’t for a very tight offside call, he would have won a penalty.
He notably switched to the right wing in the second-half, after Victor Munoz (£6.5m) was subbed off, ending the match with nine DefCons.
ENCISO’S SHOTS, BUSY PALACIOS
Ipswich actually had 14 shots to Liverpool’s 10, but they lacked any real quality in attack, with the majority of their attempts from outside the box.
Enciso was the Tractor Boys’ main threat, with six of those efforts.
No FPL player has registered more shots than Enciso so far this season (12), but his xG per shot is only 0.07, so there have been plenty of low-scoring opportunities from outside the box.
Above: Julio Enciso’s shot map in 2026/27
Gary O’Neil’s men have now conceded eight goals in three matches.
They admittedly weren’t terrible defensively against Liverpool, but the opening period was a bit like the second-half at Old Trafford last week, when they seemed to lose their heads.
On a more positive note, World Cup winner Exequiel Palacios (£5.0m) started ahead of Marcelino Nunez (£5.0m) in midfield and racked up 19 defensive contributions (DefCon).
Another new arrival, Zian Flemming (£5.5m), came on as a second-half substitute.
MATCH SUMMARY
