Kieffer Moore joined Ipswich Town on deadline day and has been in excellent form for the Tractor Boys.
Ipswich Town are back on track for Premier League promotion following a rocky few weeks that could have wrecked their ambition for consecutive promotions.
The Tractor Boys have won five consecutive Championship games and are presently just three points behind league leaders Leicester City.
The Foxes and Tractor Boys had been the league’s top two for the bulk of the season, but Kieran McKenna’s team struggled in December and January, with Leeds United and Southampton both overtaking them at some point.
McKenna’s team has gotten back on track, thanks to January deadline day loan acquisition Kieffer Moore.
Moore, a Bournemouth striker, was coveted by nearly half of the division in January, but he chose to return to his former club, Ipswich, where he spent the 2017/18 season. It’s fair to say that the move has paid off thus far.
Kieffer Moore’s form for Ipswich Town so far
Moore joined an Ipswich team that appeared to be sliding out of contention for automatic promotion.
The Tractor Boys had won only one of their previous seven league games and were eliminated from the FA Cup at home to sixth-tier Maidstone United.
Moore made his second appearance for the club in the beginning of February, with his new side trailing Preston 3-0 at halftime. The Welsh striker came on as a half-time substitute, and while he couldn’t save a point for Ipswich, he did score twice to make the result more respectable, 3-2 at Deepdale.
Ipswich are unbeaten since then, with a 2-2 draw against West Brom followed by four successive victories, giving them a possibility of consecutive promotions under Kieran McKenna.
Moore has scored three more goals since his debut brace at Deepdale, including a 4-0 win over Millwall, a 4-3 win over Rotherham United, and a 2-0 win over Plymouth Argyle this weekend.
This brings his record to five goals in seven games, and it’s no exaggeration to suggest that Moore’s presence has given the team new energy.
The 31-year-old is known for his muscular presence, and his statistics reflect that. According to Fotmob, Moore has won 56.2% of all duels in the Championship this season, placing him in the top 3% of players in his position.
This is also true for aerial duels. This season, he has won 62.3% of aerial duels, ranking among the top 3% of players.
However, his goal scoring record demonstrates that there is much more to his game than just physical strength, and it’s easy to see why Ipswich wanted to sign him in January.
Kieffer Moore could fire Ipswich Town to the Premier League
Even the most enthusiastic of Ipswich Town fans would have believed their automatic promotion ambitions were over by the beginning of February, but Kieffer Moore has given them genuine hope of playing Premier League football for the first time since 2002.
They will be encouraged by Southampton’s recent hiccup, and even Leicester, who appeared to be on their way to winning the league, have fallen in recent weeks, losing three in a row.
Despite this, they are now only three points behind the Foxes and may even be in contention for the title.
Kieffer Moore has given Ipswich optimism again, and he will need to keep scoring if the club is to earn promotion.
With 11 games remaining, everything is up for grabs, which Ipswich fans would have welcomed just six weeks ago.
