Liverpool fan's Ed Sheeran joke goes down well as Arne Slot given proper English welcome

One Liverpool supporter, engaged in a friendly chat with locals outside Portman Road, suggested that Ed Sheeran's investment in his beloved football club could only bring good things.

His quip that anything keeping the Ipswich-obsessed singer away from the recording studio should be encouraged, drew a few chuckles. Scousers are known for their love of music and their deep understanding of football.

They wouldn't have been overly concerned when their team struggled for nearly an hour against a side clearly eager to make a mark on their Premier League return.

However, they may have felt a twinge of worry when Diogo Jota missed a header from six yards out. But any anxiety was quickly dispelled when the Portuguese forward broke the deadlock, crushing Ipswich hopes with a precise finish off Mo Salah's selfless pass just moments later.

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Salah himself found the back of the net , deftly controlling the ball and exchanging passes with Dominik Szoboszlai before leaving Leif Davis in a spin and toe-poking home, reports the Mirror . Two goals within five minutes signalled 'game over', providing Ipswich with a sobering glimpse of what the rest of the season might hold.

Like the sea of fans clad in deep blue to celebrate their club's Premier League return after a 22-year absence, Sheeran would have relished the occasion even though he had to leave at half-time with the score still 0-0 to perform at a concert in Serbia.

Ipswich's new minority shareholder was seen handing out free pies smothered in his latest hot sauce recipe to fans before the game. His radiant face, framed by a mop of ginger hair, was featured on TV almost as frequently as the gradually spreading frown on the bald Arne Slot's brow.

This was quite the English welcome for the Dutchman given the task of filling Jurgen Klopp's shoes. It's somewhat ironic that the match took place roughly 100 miles closer to the Hook of Holland than Albert Dock. Of course, Ipswich has its own Dutch legacy. Arnold Muhren and Frans Thijssen journeyed across the North Sea back in the 1970s to colour the old First Division in the brightest shade of Oranje.

Neither of them would have been fond of the no-holds-barred tackling that earned yellow cards for home team players Luke Woolfenden, Omari Hutchinson and Wes Burns within the first 24 minutes. Ipswich's last Premier League appearance was against Liverpool. They lost that match 5-0 and vanished from sight.

Over the years, East Anglia has often been viewed as something of a footballing wilderness. But let's not forget, Ipswich Town is the club of Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson. Around here, they cherish golden memories of their former English champions, FA Cup winners and UEFA Cup holders.

Their quaint stadium, nestled in the heart of town, is a blast from the past. It accommodates fewer than 30,000, but the roar from the home crowd was loud enough to make you believe twice that number had secured tickets. Fans were eagerly waiting outside the turnstiles even before they opened, with queues for souvenir programmes stretching far and wide.

A massive banner draped across the second tier of the Sir Bobby Robson Stand proclaimed 'The Future is Now'. That future is being moulded by Kieran McKenna. McKenna's stellar work in guiding Town back to the top flight caught the attention of Manchester United, Chelsea and Brighton last summer.

Despite the interest, McKenna committed his future to Ipswich with a new four-year deal and was given a war chest of over £70million to bring in talents like Hutchinson, Jacob Greaves, Liam Delap and Sam Szmodics. Kalvin Phillips also joined on loan from Manchester City.

Greaves' early crunching tackle on Szoboszlai set the tone for an intense first half which saw both Greaves and Hutchinson test Liverpool's Alisson. Liverpool, however, bided their time, weathering the home side's storm and eventually their superior quality shone through. There were no Klopp-esque, heart-pounding celebrations from Slot at the final whistle. But the Dutchman will still consider this a mission accomplished.