Festive Conclusions from Ipswich Town

Leicester City	1-1	Ipswich Town
	(HT 0-1)
Gallagher pen 69		Bowyer 4

King Power Stadium, attendance: 27,091
BBC Match Report

Home Team: Schmeichel, Peltier, Konchesky, Mills, Bamba, Abe, Gallagher , Dyer (King 46), Wellens (Schlupp 87), Beckford (Howard 84), Nugent

Away Team: Lee-Barratt, Cresswell, Delaney, Sonko , Edwards, Bowyer, Martin , Andrews (Bullard 43), Chopra (Emmanuel-Thomas 72), Scotland (Ellington 83), Murphy

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• 1-1 was a good result. Ipswich were better than Leicester were poor. The Tractor Boys flew out of the traps and it was their determination that saw them with the chances to go two goals ahead within five minutes. Only Kasper Schmeichel, whose brilliant save denied Michael Chopra from the penalty spot within the first minute, was awake enough to keep the Suffolk juggernaut at bay.
• Football fans are very fickle. From the second the referee blew his whistle at half time, boos rang out from the home supporters. Quite what prompted that was hard to understand. The Foxes were behind but to a good team in a rich vein of form and had not performed badly. At full time, the boo-boys were out once more and this time it was even more confusing as the home side had not only drawn level but had pushed for the victory to boot. It was a strange Boxing Day atmosphere despite the unusual noise and decent attendance.

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Winners

Yuki Abe

A return to the first team fold for Yuki Abe was the tonic needed to stabilise a turbulent and inconsistent midfield. The Japanese international was peerless, his gritty defending proving crucial to deny wave after wave of Ipswich attack whilst he provided a useful outlet in attack. A brief foray into the Tractor Boys' penalty area could have given him a goal he richly deserved for his outstanding performance. A clear man of the match.

Paul Konchesky
The first minute penalty aside, Paul Konchesky was once again at his defensive best. Although Paul Jewell has clearly done his homework and saw the former Liverpool full-back man-marked for long spells of the game, Konchesky was able to stamp his mark on the fixture and affect the most dangerous of the Foxes' attacking play.

Richie Wellens
This was a much brighter performance from the midfielder who came under heavy criticism in the wake of the Foxes' defeat to Peterborough. Playing farther up the pitch pushed Wellens into playing more positively and that was to his credit on a day where Andy King once again struggled.

Lee Peltier
Another solid performance from Konchesky's right-wing counterpart that will surely damage John Pantsil's chances of remaining in the Foxes' camp.

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Losers

Matt Mills

Aside from his injury-time opportunity to give Leicester an unlikely victory, Mills was largely ineffective and was as shaky at the back as you will ever see him. He lacked conviction and confidence, stood off the ball and gave far too much space to his opponents.

David Nugent
An off-form afternoon for David Nugent was only cheered by his not being sent off for persistent fouling. Nugent has talent and a strong head in equal measure and that head overtook his ability this afternoon. His niggling fouls were detrimental to his and Leicester City's performance and it should have been him, not Jermaine Beckford, that made way for Jeffrey Schlupp.

Andy King
The Welshman would have received a bigger pay-off had he been shipped off for a few million pounds in the Summer. Since his promotion to the senior Welsh team his form at Leicester has dipped considerably and he  will be lucky to make the bench against Portsmouth after this performance.

Sol Bamba
Underrated and, indeed, underused as a mere centre half? Stick him the middle of the park and see what he can do without the pressure of having to defend.