Sunderland vs. Ipswich Betting Tips: High Scoring Contest Expected in the North East

Three matches take place in the Championship on Sunday afternoon with the final of the trio being Sunderland against Ipswich at 5pm. The game from the Stadium of Light will be shown live on Sky Sports and we’ve got Anthony Eadson on hand to provide us with two tips he thinks represent value in the betting markets.

We have two sides here who I think will both perform well this term and I see no reason why they cannot both challenge for the top-six. 

After their promotion from League One, Sunderland made it to the play-offs a few months ago, but lost out to Luton Town in the semi-finals, with The Hatters going on to achieve promotion at Wembley. Jode Bellingham, Bradley Dack and Jenson Seelt have all arrived in the North East over the summer and most betting sites have them priced at 8/5 to kick-off their campaign with a win.

Ipswich Town will be looking to follow in the footsteps of Sunderland after one of the most impressive League One campaigns in recent memory, despite finishing second to eventual winners Plymouth. 

Bookmakers really believe that Kieran McKenna’s side has the ability to do something special this season, with William Hill only having four sides priced shorter in the League Winner market. In terms of odds for this season-opener with Sunderland, The Tractor boys can be sided with at 7/4 for the win, while the draw is on offer at 23/10. 

The first selection I’m touting on Sunday is for Over 2.5 goals to be scored in the match, which is available at 10/11. As I’ve already mentioned, Ipswich were sensational last season scoring 101 goals, with a remarkable goal difference of +66. 

For context, Manchester City only finished with a goal difference of +61 and I think we will see plenty of high-scoring contests involving Ipswich once again this season. When it comes to Over 2.5 goals, this selection landed in 27 of their 46 games last season (59%), with no other side in the third tier having a higher ratio. 

Sunderland were also involved in plenty of exciting matches in the previous campaign, with 54% clearing the Over 2.5 goals line. Only two sides in the Championship had a higher percentage, with the figure rising to 58% when looking at just home matches for The Black Cats. 

Two sides who like to play attacking football and who will both be keen to get off to a good start, looks like a nice combination for a high-scoring affair here. 

I’ve also had a small bit of loose change on a player to score and be carded in the form of Conor Chaplin. The Ipswich forward managed 29 goals in all formats last season and is priced around 20/1 to be the top-scorer in the Championship in 2023/24. 

The 26-year-old was also cautioned in five league outings last season, with only three of McKenna’s squad picking up more. Chaplin was also carded against Burnley in a 20-minute cameo in the FA Cup and I think he will be chomping at the bit to make a good impression in the second tier, which may lead to a few overzealous challenges.

Chaplin scored and was carded in the same game three times last season, and it would be no surprise to see that figure rise in The Championship. At the time of writing 27/1 is available on the Bet Builder double with Paddy Power.