Leeds United could only watch as Ipswich Town returned to second place in the Championship table on Saturday afternoon – as Kieran McKenna’s side cruised to a 2-0 away win over Plymouth Argyle.
Failure to beat Huddersfield Town in the Yorkshire derby during Saturday’s lunchtime clash gave both Southampton and Ipswich the chance to claw Daniel Farke‘s men back in. Both sides did that with wins.
Southampton came form behind to edge past Birmingham City, winning 4-3 with Tony Mowbray’s men going down to 10 men. Ipswich are now back in form, winning five Championship matches in a row.
After a shaky period, Ipswich are more than in the race again – two points ahead of us with all four teams all having played the same amount of games. Leicester are only three ahead of Ipswich at the top, now.
One player that has proved crucial in Ipswich’s return to form is January addition, Kieffer Moore. The 31-year-old, a Wales teammate of our four Welsh stars, has scored five goals in his seven Ipswich outings.
Kieffer Moore could prove decisive after Leeds links in January
He has also laid on an assist – scoring Ipswich’s second on Saturday. The target man is proving to be an incredibly effective addition at Portman Road, and he is providing the difference in Ipswich’s final third.
Something they lacked somewhat during the first half of the season. Back in January, Leeds were linked with a move for Moore – a player that scored 12 Wales goals, half of which were created by Dan James.
Moore is single-handedly throwing Ipswich back into the race to finish in the top two. Leeds’ interest is unlikely to have surpassed simply that, interest. But he has the potential to become a decisive factor.
Not only did Leeds decide not to make a move for a player that is shining in front of goal, but he could now help Ipswich kick Leeds aside in the race for the top two; a double blow for Daniel Farke and Leeds.