Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna described his side’s 3–1 loss to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium as a match decided by key moments, most of which went against his team.
Leicester struck early when Bobby De Cordova-Reid opened the scoring in the eighth minute with a goal that came largely out of nothing. As Ipswich began to settle and grow into the contest, the hosts delivered another blow just before half-time, with Abdul Fatawu unleashing a stunning effort from deep inside his own half to double the lead.
Any hopes of a comeback were further dented seven minutes after the restart when Leif Davis slipped while attempting to shepherd the ball clear, allowing Ricardo Pereira to cut it back for Jordan Ayew to make it 3–0. Ipswich later pulled a goal back, but despite substitute Jens Cajuste being gifted a chance by Leicester goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk, they were unable to add a second.
Reflecting on the defeat, McKenna admitted his side fell short on the day. “It wasn’t a great performance,” he said. “The goals ended up deciding the game. Conceding a strike like that early away from home against a strong team makes things very difficult.”
He felt Ipswich had responded well after the opening goal and were starting to take control. “We grew into the game and had a really good chance to make it 1–1. Apart from a couple of set-piece moments, there wasn’t much in it during open play.”
McKenna also pointed to the second goal as a turning point. “The goal right on half-time was just incredible individual quality. We didn’t do a lot wrong, but sometimes you have to hold your hands up and credit the player.”
The third goal frustrated him most. “We’re more disappointed with that one than the first two. We switched off just after half-time when we thought we had a free-kick, and from then on it became very tough.”
Ipswich did manage to pull a goal back and created chances to reduce the deficit further. “If we make it 3–2, maybe the game changes,” McKenna added. “But it was one of those days where the big moments went their way, and they took them brilliantly.”