Ipswich Town will make late fitness tests on three players for tonight’s League One encounter at Bristol Rovers with Massimo Luongo, George Edmundson and Nathan Broadhead doubts for the clash at the Mem.
Midfielder Luongo, who signed last month from Middlesbrough, and defender Edmundson, a regular starter all season, missed Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Sheffield Wednesday while January’s marquee signing Broadhead, a £1.5million addition from Everton, departed in the 80th minute with cramp. Midfielder Lee Evans is definitely out of the game due to a knee injury.
Ipswich have experienced a busy schedule with four games in their last 11 days; in contrast, Rovers have played two matches in the same timeframe. Both teams are out of form with Ipswich having won just one of their last five league games, and the Gas on a run of four straight defeats.
“It’s a quick turnaround so we need to do everything we can with the recovery and we’ll make some assessments,” head coach Kieran McKenna told iFollow Ipswich . "Massimo and George Edmundson weren’t quite right for Saturday, so we’ll have to see how they are over the next 24 hours to see whether they’re going to make this one or not.
“Apart from that, we’ve got a few little issues after Saturday. Nathan went off with a cramp as well. We’ll have to make the assessments over the next 24 hours and give the players as much time as we can and make the final decisions on Tuesday for this one.”
Rovers will once again be without midfielder Jordan Rossiter and defender Lewis Gibson due to knee and thigh issues, respectively. Midfielder Sam Finley serves the second game of his three-match suspension for violent conduct, while Rovers will hope captain Paul Coutts has recovered from the illness that forced him to miss Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Lincoln City.
Striker Ryan Loft is suspended following his red card at Sincil Bank but there are no concerns over Josh Coburn who was substituted in the second half. Speaking after the game, Joey Barton confirmed the Middlesbrough loanee was withdrawn for tactical, not fitness, reasons.
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