Ipswich boss: Ed Sheeran kit maybe played part in ‘massive day’

Ipswich Town head coach Kieran McKenna said the team’s Ed Sheeran-designed kit “maybe” brought his side some good luck on a “massive day” as his team earned their first Premier League victory of the season against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Goals from Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap earned Ipswich the 2-1 win in north London that moved them out of the relegation zone. British musician and Ipswich fan Ed Sheeran was in attendance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to watch his team earn their first win while wearing the “Suffolk pink” third kit he helped design.

Sheeran became the club’s main shirt sponsor in 2021 and bought a minority stake in the club this summer following the club’s promotion to the Premier League.

“We were wearing the third kit, the one he had a part in designing, so that was nice,” McKenna told the BBC. “Maybe he brought us some good luck.

“He congratulated the boys, and everyone knows he’s been an important part of the club in the last few years with the support he gives us, so it was nice for him to be here.”

McKenna, who has previously held coaching positions at Spurs and Manchester United, took over as Ipswich head coach in 2021 with the club in the third tier of English football. Sunday’s victory was also McKenna’s first as a Premier League manager.

“It’s a really significant moment and a day to cherish in the recent history of the club,” McKenna said.

“You look at the journey the club has been on in the past 22 years, the ups and downs, some heights but some depths as well.

“For the supporters to see their club win in the Premier League at a fantastic club like Tottenham, in a stadium like this against a team like that, it is a massive day for them.”

Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich earned their first victory of the season on Sunday while wearing a pink kit designed in collaboration with Ed Sheeran. HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images

Meanwhile, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou took responsibility for his side’s inconsistency this season after they fell to the shock 2-1 home defeat.

Having eliminated Manchester City in the League Cup before beating Aston Villa 4-1 in the Premier League last weekend, Spurs’ positive momentum was checked on Thursday at Galatasaray before coming to a halt on Sunday.

The defeat left Spurs in 10th place with 16 points from 11 matches.

“The inconsistency we’re having this year, ultimately it comes down to me and my approach and something I need to try and fix and see if I can help the players in that area,” Postecoglou told a news conference.

The Australian did not think Spurs’ Thursday-Sunday run of fixtures was the reason for their struggles.

“If we were seeing that we’d probably feel it more at the end of games and we’re not feeling it at the end of games,” he added.

Midfielder Pape Matar Sarr and striker Dominic Solanke both left Sunday’s game due to injury but Postecoglou thought both players had avoided serious problems.

“I think Pape is all right. He just got a bit of a knock,” he added. “Dom jarred his knee, it was pretty sore but he wanted to continue. Hopefully it is nothing serious.”