It’s scheduled to be a cracker at St. Mary’s on Tuesday night. A match that decides the season for the championship promotion race.
Southampton are arguably the best team in the league at the moment. In 2026, they were virtually unstoppable, pushing Man City all the way in the FA Cup semi-final at the weekend.
Breaking into the automatic spot seemed unthinkable until recently, but a win against Ipswich on Tuesday night would move them within points of the Tractor Boys heading into the final day of the season at lunchtime on Saturday.
They could very well open it up wide for themselves, for Millwall and for Middlesbrough.
Victory alone is enough. It’s a draw and it’s a playoff.
Ipswich need three more points to effectively guarantee promotion, whether it’s on Tuesday night or at home to QPR on Saturday. But they really, really don’t want that danger to last until the end.
For them, a draw is nothing more than a defeat.
Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna said ahead of the match: “It’s clear both teams want to win and we’re not looking for a draw.”
Tuesday, April 28th 7pm
7:45pm kickoff
“I think we all know that if the game is tied with 10 minutes left, it’s not going to be a draw for both of us. Of course, a win is a dream scenario.
“But to be honest, I don’t spend a lot of energy thinking about how much relief it’s going to give me, how I’m going to feel, things like that.
“We’ll deal with how we’re going to feel if we get the result we want this week, whether it’s Tuesday or Saturday, then we’ll deal with it.”
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Southampton manager Tonda Eckert spoke to Sky Sports about her belief in the team ahead of the game against Ipswich.
Southampton are an in-form side, but Ipswich may benefit from the fact that they played an exhausting 90 minutes at Wembley on Saturday night in the FA Cup semi-final.
Fortunately for Southampton manager Tonda Eckert, the squad’s depth leaves room for rotation.
“This is prime time of the season,” he told Sky Sports. “We strive all year long to have big games in April and May. It says a lot about the team’s readiness and ability to perform at this stage of the season.
“This is what your job is for. The staff and the whole team want to be in this position. The important thing is to accept the pressure. Pressure gives us energy and the players showed that they can handle the big moments.”
Under the lights of St. Mary’s Cathedral, few events are bigger than Tuesday night.
Southampton will jump out of the trap – it will be a great sight
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Jobi McAnuf reflects on the “pivotal” match between Southampton and Ipswich as they aim for automatic promotion to the Premier League.
Jobi McAnuff of Sky Sports:
Once the match was rearranged, everyone looked at it and thought this could be absolutely pivotal. They were incredible, especially considering Southampton’s form under manager Tonda Eckert.
We have to win, so we should win and it would be a great spectacle.
Eckert has been able to effectively rotate his key players during this strong run, and the next game will likely see one or two players return for a bit of a refresh.
Southampton pushed Man City to the end against Wembley on Saturday.
They continue to play at an incredible tempo. Ross Stewart has been huge for them and they really missed out on a true No. 9 at the beginning of the season. Cail Larin also offers a good option and Leo Cienza has had a great season on the left. They have threats all over the pitch.
Given their form and the fact that they have to win, perhaps they will jump out of the trap and give it a real shot.
For Ipswich, it’s more about not losing. If they lose, they will be under a lot of pressure heading into the final day.
Ipswich remain in the lead for promotion.
They’re almost there, but it’s a matter of their mentality.
They haven’t been great this season. Sometimes they get a little overwhelming. They have top-level players in the Championship in each position and were expected to do even better after their derby win against Norwich. Lately, they’ve been finding ways to get through games, but they haven’t been all that impressive.
It’s going to be a really difficult night for them. How they approach the game is key and that’s what makes this game so interesting.
Ipswich should be favorites given their position, but it’s such a big game that things could have changed significantly by Wednesday morning.
Defeat would have a huge psychological impact and could give Southampton a big boost and certainly pull Millwall into the race, but for now Ipswich remain the favorites.
story about the match
If Ipswich win on goal difference, they will almost mathematically be promoted to the Premier League. The Tractor Boys can secure the second automatic promotion spot if they pick up four points from their final two games. Southampton need to win their remaining two games and hope Ipswich, Millwall and Middlebsbrough don’t win on the final day to get automatic promotion. Southampton have won one of their last six games against Ipswich (D3 L2) and are unbeaten in their last three. Southampton’s only win came against Ipswich at St Mary’s, a 1-0 win 19 years ago in February 2007. Southampton are unbeaten in their last 17 games in the Championship (W13 D4), their longest unbeaten run in the Championship this season. Ipswich have lost one of their last 13 games in the Championship (W7 D5), including a 2-0 defeat at Portsmouth on 14 April.
