Arsenal defeat 'a step in the right direction' for Ipswich, says McKenna

Kieran McKenna described Friday's 1-0 defeat to Arsenal as a "step in the right direction" for Ipswich Town, saying they will need to maintain their defensive standards in upcoming games.

Kai Havertz's first-half strike condemned Ipswich to a fifth defeat in the space of six Premier League matches, leaving them 19th in the table and three points adrift of safety.

The Tractor Boys were unable to offer a threat in attack after Liam Delap spurned one early chance, failing to record a single touch in the Arsenal box in the opening 45 minutes.

That made them just the second team to do so in the Premier League this season, after Nottingham Forest versus Liverpool in September.

However, they managed to frustrate Arsenal for long periods, with the first half containing a total of four shots – the fewest in the opening 45 minutes of a Premier League game since West Ham against Newcastle United in October 2023 (also four).

With games against Chelsea, Fulham, Brighton and Hove Albion, Manchester City and Liverpool to come before the end of January, McKenna feels Ipswich can take confidence from their defensive efforts in north London.

"It was a good step back in the right direction for us," he told Amazon Prime Video. "We didn't hit our levels against Newcastle.

"We knew today we had to be resilient and we did that. It was important that we ended the game solidly and we feel we can be compact.

"We'll take confidence from that. The way we turned the momentum to put the game in a good position for us, I think is something to take confidence from.

"I think we can. Some of our defending was good and we'll need that on Monday against Chelsea."

Ipswich attempted just three shots in the match, the seventh time a team has managed three or fewer efforts in the Premier League this season.

Three of those instances have been against Arsenal, all of them coming in December, with Fulham and Everton limited to two shots apiece.

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, McKenna added: "The players worked really hard and we got the game to a good place in the second half after a good 20 minutes.

"Early on we were pinned in and couldn't get out, but to where we were after 89 minutes, I was really pleased.

"In the first half it was only the goal where I thought we needed to defend better.

"We were resilient and compact when we needed to be. Arsenal spent a lot of the first half in our defensive third but were unable to penetrate."