Ipswich Town Vs Swansea: How a 3-0 Portman Road win reshapes the promotion picture

Why it matters now: Ipswich Town Vs Swansea delivered a result that narrows the gap to second place to just three points and alters the momentum chart for the run-in. The 3-0 victory highlighted a powerful home profile, left Swansea slipping down the table, and handed Ipswich a game-in-hand advantage that changes immediate expectations for the promotion race.

Performance shift — standings, momentum and what the table shows

The win takes Ipswich to fourth in the Championship while cutting the gap to second to only three points. Kieran McKenna's side have a game in hand on second-placed Middlesbrough and have played two fewer than Millwall, who occupy third. Ipswich have scored 59 league goals this season, a total beaten only by the leaders Coventry City. That offensive output, combined with a string of home results, strengthens their position as contenders for an immediate return to the Premier League.

Ipswich Town Vs Swansea — match details embedded

At Portman Road Ipswich secured a 3-0 victory. Anis Mehmeti opened the scoring with a drilled finish from just inside the box after a half-cleared low cross following a surge by Leif Davis down the left; Ben Cabango had half-cleared the initial delivery. Ivan Azon doubled the lead late in the first half with a curling effort into the far corner after earlier efforts from Dan Neil and Azon had forced saves from Lawrence Vigouroux. Swansea's potential equaliser — Gustavo Nunes tapping in from Melker Widell's low cross — was ruled out by an offside flag on Widell. The third goal arrived after Mehmeti dispossessed Josh Tymon and squared for substitute George Hirst to steer home, his eighth of the season. Swansea's best moment came with the final kick, when leading scorer Zan Vipotnik, who had begun on the bench, hit a free-kick against the bar.

Home form, squad notes and travel troubles

This was Ipswich's first home outing since January and continued an impressive Portman Road record: Charlton Athletic are the only visiting side to win there in 2025-26. Ipswich claimed an 11th victory in 17 home league games since they dropped out of the top flight last May. Even with Jack Clarke starting on the bench and Jaden Philogene absent through injury, Ipswich maintained attacking menace. Swansea, managed by Vitor Matos, slipped to 16th and suffered a ninth defeat in their past 11 away fixtures. Goalkeeper Christian Walton denied Swansea efforts from Malick Yalcouye and Liam Cullen during the match.

Betting angle and related signals from recent form

Bookmakers and tipsters were already eyeing this fixture: a tipster's best bet for the day offered an 11-8 selection from the Championship on the Ipswich v Swansea game. That tip referenced Ipswich's November 4-1 win at Swansea — a match that featured a couple of own goals from former Ipswich defender Cameron Burgess — and noted Burgess had spent four seasons at Ipswich before moving to Swansea last summer and will be keen to make amends. The same betting note pointed to Ipswich rebounding from a 5-3 away defeat at Wrexham with a 2-0 victory at Watford on Tuesday, and highlighted that the Tractor Boys have conceded only 12 goals in 16 home fixtures this term. It also flagged that only one of Swansea's ten away defeats has featured more than three goals, listing 1-0 losses at leaders Coventry and second-placed Middlesbrough and 2-1 reverses at Millwall and Hull, with Hull described as being in the playoff places. The published betting copy included standard affiliate disclosures and warned that offers may have since expired; opening accounts linked offers would have generated revenue for the publisher. Copyright notices in the match coverage carry dates of 2025 and 2026.

Here’s the part that matters: Ipswich have combined prolific scoring with fortress-like home statistics, while Swansea's away run remains fragile — a combination that reshapes betting and promotional expectations.

• Ipswich 3-0 Swansea: goals by Anis Mehmeti, Ivan Azon and George Hirst.
• Mehmeti's goal came after Leif Davis' run and a half-clear by Ben Cabango; Azon scored a tight-angle curl; Hirst's strike came after Mehmeti dispossessed Josh Tymon.
• Ipswich are fourth, three points shy of second, with a game in hand on Middlesbrough and two fewer games played than Millwall (third).
• Ipswich have 59 league goals this season; Coventry City have scored more.
• Tractor Boys home defence: 12 goals conceded in 16 home fixtures; Swansea have ten away defeats, mostly low-scoring.

Micro timeline: November (Ipswich won 4-1 at Swansea); January (this was Ipswich's first home outing since then); last May (Ipswich dropped out of the top flight). The real question now is whether Middlesbrough will respond when they travel to Birmingham City on Monday; Ipswich have played fewer games than any other side in the division as the run-in approaches.

It’s easy to overlook, but Mehmeti's second strike since joining from Bristol City in January and Hirst's growing goal tally are practical indicators of squad depth rather than luck alone.