Ipswich Town v Shrewsbury Town preview: Josh Laurent ready to hit the heights again

The midfielder popped up with goals at Stoke City – a lovely winner to cap the dramatic turnaround – and Wolves – to momentarily put Shrews ahead in the FA Cup, writes Lewis Cox.

He only managed four goals overall, a statistic he knows must improve. But those efforts show he wasn’t fazed by bright lights and had a penchant for making an impact.

Laurent also put in a big performance full of strong running in the backs-to-the-wall draw at Sunderland just after Christmas in front of more than 33,000 onlookers – the biggest league crowd in Town’s history.

With Sam Ricketts’ Town playing on the break, on what will feel like a big playing surface, with emphasis on the hosts to dominate; it feels like a game that could suit the returning Laurent – who has one start under his belt after a frustrating period with back-to-back muscle injuries.

The midfielder insists it is natural to raise performances on big occasions. But, according to Laurent, there is an inner determination to give a good account of himself.

“I’m hoping!” Was Laurent’s response to another goal to add to his big-game player repertoire. “You go into every game giving your all but for some reason you’ll go to a place like Ipswich and you probably are giving a bit more.

“You don’t want to be embarrassed, you want to show you can cause an upset.

“I love underdogs. Hopefully we’re on that side. It does help, there’s no pressure and it’s all on them to beat us.

“I expect them to be high tempo. They’ll be confident, they’ll think they can breeze the league. But every game is big for them because everyone wants to beat Ipswich.

“Players like myself having not played there before, with the stadium and crowd and hopefully silencing them.”

Ipswich’s two home attendances this season have been 24,000 (Sunderland) and 18,000 (AFC Wimbledon). Tomorrow’s gate will likely be somewhere in between.

The affable Laurent is a big part of the Town dynamic but he admitted things were tough after returning from an injury setback against Portsmouth on the opening day, only to be struck by misfortune again

“The first time I was injured it wasn’t too bad, I wasn’t too affected by it. The second time I probably had a grump and moan for a week,” he added.

“I felt the second (injury) after coming on against Portsmouth. Deep down I knew I’d probably torn a muscle but I kept saying to myself ‘it’s fine’. It was hard to take.”

Likely line-up:

Shrewsbury Town (3-5-2): O'Leary; Beckles, Ebanks-Landell, Pierre; Love, Edwards, Goss, Laurent, Giles; Whalley, Morison.

Subs: Murphy, Golbourne, Walker, McCormick, Thompson, Vincelot, Udoh.