Kieran McKenna hailed his Ipswich players for coming back from behind to win 2-1 at Watford and move to the top of the Championship.
Yaser Asprilla put the Hornets ahead early on but George Hirst’s equaliser set up an entertaining contest that was settled late on by Town captain Sam Morsy, who capitalised on an error by Wesley Hoedt.
McKenna, whose side are now 10 points clear of third-placed Leeds, said: “It was a performance that was all about the character in the group.
“Even at 1-1, even with tired legs, they stayed brave. The players dug in and gave every ounce of effort that they had in every minute of the game. If you do that then you deserve to come out on the right side of a difficult game.”
McKenna had extra praise for Morsy, who is a rare scorer.
“Sam is normally our deepest midfielder and it is not in his job description to go pressing centre-halves,” he said.
“He is saying that he scuffed it but it looked like a really good finish. He is being a bit modest. It was a great bit of determination.”
Ipswich host Norwich on Saturday in the first East Anglia derby since 2019 having lost just twice in the league all season.
McKenna said: “It’s a game to embrace. This is a massive derby for our supporters. We will prepare it as we do any other game and respect the opponent.”
Ipswich gifted Watford a 12th-minute lead when goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky passed straight to Asprilla. He set up Mileta Rajovic and Hladky parried the striker’s shot directly back to Asprilla, who smashed the ball high into the net.
The visitors levelled in the 24th minute after Ben Hamer parried Omari Hutchinson’s deflected shot to Hirst for a simple finish.
Ipswich took all three points thanks to Hoedt’s 80th-minute clanger. The Dutch defender lost possession to Morsy and the Egypt midfielder strode forward to slot past Hamer.
Watford manager Valerien Ismael had words of encouragement for his captain.
He said: “Mistakes are a part of the game. There is no vaccine against mistakes. We have to make sure we concentrate and stay in the game.
“We are all together, we support him and in three days he can show his quality.
“We are really disappointed to lose a game like that but we showed again that we are ready to compete and show our level.
“In the first half the main issue was we needed more control. We got that in the second half. At the other end the mistake we made was difficult, it shocked us, but it is a learning process now.
“We know that we can score at any time so we need to be more calm and defend better.
“Now it is about the fine details – we need to become ruthless in front of goal. It is the balance we need to find now. The players have the desire to close the gap but we have to have more composure in certain situations.”
Lopetegui rues missed opportunity as West Ham lose to Man City
West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui was not encouraged by the performance of his team despite losing 3-1 at home to Manchester City in their third league game.
“It is true that City is one of the best teams around the world for sure… but it is also true too that in the second half we have been very close to a draw,” he said speaking to BBC Match of the Day.
“I think we have played one very good second half. The start has been very good for us too.”
West Ham threatened for extended periods of the match and had chances to level the match at 2-1 down, with the best coming from Mohammed Kudus as he smashed a shot against the bar in the second half.
They also started the game brightly before going a goal down inside 10 minutes.
“In my mind we started very well, being aggressive,” said Lopetegui.
“We know in this plan normally they have initiative, it’s very difficult to not concede initiative then. That’s why you have to do a lot of very good things to overcome them.
“In the second half we had chances, I think we kept the ball much more, much more, and didn't concede a lot of chances."
But the hosts were ultimately undone by the brilliant finishing of Erling Haaland, who scored his second hat-trick in as many matches.
“He is one of the best players in the world, that's why he plays for Manchester City,” he said.
“You have to compete with these kind of players. City has the power and the quality to create chances.”
But ultimately, he was left frustrated at the sense of a missed opportunity and that his team were unable to earn themselves a draw that hadn’t seemed implausible during the match.
“Today I think the first goal was a pity for us but I’ve said it. I was happy with the performance think we were able to draw but again they damage us,” he said.
“Against this kind of team, if you make a mistake they don’t forgive. This is the difference they have… A little mistake they punish you, they punish us.
“We have to improve, to know to compete against this kind of team to be close to perfection.
“Don't make mistakes, be calm, defend well… we have quality players too.”
Bayer Leverkusen 2-3 Leipzig: Visitors fightback halts unbeaten streak for Alonso's side
Bayer Leverkusen suffered their first defeat in 36 Bundesliga matches, as Leipzig came from behind to stun Xabi Alonso's side 3-2 at BayArena.
Lois Openda struck twice for Marco Rose's, who recovered from 2-0 down to make it two wins from two and move to the summit of the table.
It looked like business as usual for the reigning Bundesliga champions when they scored twice in the last seven minutes of the first half through Jeremie Frimpong and Alejandro Grimaldo.
However, Leipzig replied deep into first-half stoppage time with Kevin Kampl reducing the deficit.
Openda then brought the visitors level in the 57th minute, before a stunning long-range strike completed the turnaround 10 minutes from time, condemning Leverkusen to their first league defeat in 15 months.
Data Debrief: Leverkusen's long streak comes to a shuddering halt
Leipzig became the first side to beat Leverkusen in a Bundesliga match since Bochum achieved the feat a staggering 462 days earlier.
The visitors have begun a Bundesliga season with two wins from two for only the second time, also doing so in 2019-20.
They are also now unbeaten in 13 league matches, their longest such streak since Rose took charge.
As for Leverkusen, their invincible streak is officially history, as is their 29-game unbeaten run on home soil.
Sancho given fresh start with Chelsea loan move
Jadon Sancho has secured a move away from Manchester United, having joined Chelsea on Deadline Day on a season-long loan.
The deal includes an obligation to buy for between £20-£25 million at the end of the loan, according to widespread reports, meaning that the 24-year-old will not be returning to Old Trafford next summer.
Work to complete the transfer came late on Deadline Day, with a deal sheet being submitted to ensure the signing could go through after the 11pm deadline.
Chelsea were able to get the deal over the line, confirming the move was complete on Saturday evening.
"I’m really excited to be here," Sancho said. "London is where I grew up and I’m happy to be back.
"The manager spoke to me about the project and, for a young player, it's exciting. Hopefully I can bring goals and assists to the Bridge."
It brings an end to a three-year spell at Old Trafford for Sancho. The winger originally joined United on a five-year contract in 2021 but, following a public falling out with manager Erik ten Hag, found his first-team opportunities limited.
Sancho made 83 appearances in all competitions for United, but his last start for the club came against Manchester City in the 2023 FA Cup final. He made three substitute appearances in August 2023 before moving back to Dortmund on loan in January, where he scored three goals in 21 appearances.
His final outing in a United shirt came off the bench in their Community Shield defeat to Manchester City, but he was not included in the squad for the first two league games.
Sancho joins a club with plenty of competition for attacking places, with Cole Palmer, Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson, Pedro Neto, Joao Felix and Noni Madueke among their roster.
Chelsea did also manage to move some players on during Deadline Day. Raheem Sterling secured a loan move to Arsenal on Deadline Day, while Trevoh Chalobah joined Crystal Palace, Armando Broja moved to Everton and Djordje Petrovic was loaned by Strasbourg.
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