Gary O’Neil sends ‘no fear’ message as Ipswich prepare for Sunderland Premier League opener

Gary O'Neil has told Ipswich Town to approach their Premier League return with “no fear” as the newly-promoted side prepare to host Sunderland at Portman Road on Saturday.

Ipswich secured an immediate return to the top flight by finishing second in the Championship last season, but plenty has changed since promotion was confirmed.

Kieran McKenna departed after three promotions with the club, opening the door for former Wolves manager O'Neil to take charge.

The new Ipswich boss has also been backed with significant transfer activity as the Tractor Boys attempt to build a squad capable of staying in the Premier League.

Ipswich could hand several competitive debuts to new signings against Sunderland.

Abdul Fatawu, Sasa Lukic, Issa Diop and Daizen Maeda are among the players brought to Portman Road during a busy summer.

O'Neil has also reunited with two players he previously worked with at Strasbourg, with Julio Enciso and Abdoul Ouattara completing moves to Ipswich this week.

The scale of the changes means O'Neil has had limited time to bring everything together before the competitive action begins.

He has nevertheless praised the work done throughout the club during pre-season.

“Everyone has worked their socks off pre-season,” O'Neil told TownTV.

“There’s been so much work that has gone on in such a small amount of time to try and get this together and we are going to need everybody.”

Ipswich are considered among the early relegation candidates following their promotion, and their opening schedule will provide an immediate indication of their ability to compete at this level.

Sunderland visit Portman Road first before Ipswich travel to Manchester United and then host Liverpool.

O'Neil, however, does not want his players or supporters intimidated by the challenge ahead.

“I don’t want anyone to be scared of what we are going into,” he said.

“The message is there is no fear here about what we are going to go into.”

The Ipswich boss accepts his team's performances will not always produce the results they deserve but has promised they will fully commit to their approach.

“We will fully commit to what we want to do, we understand it won’t always be enough and we won’t always get what we deserve,” he added.

“But we are going to give it a real go every week.”

O'Neil also believes the Portman Road crowd will have an important role to play during Ipswich's return to the Premier League.

With a substantially changed squad and new manager, he wants the club to remain united when difficult periods inevitably arrive.

“Everybody at the training ground, everyone in the stands, [needs] to make sure we are a real force this year,” O'Neil said.

“Let’s all get together and see what we can do against Sunderland.”

Ipswich will complete their preparations before welcoming Sunderland to Portman Road for their Premier League opener on Saturday.

O'Neil could hand competitive debuts to several summer arrivals as he begins his first season in charge.

There will be little time for Ipswich to settle after that, with Manchester United and Liverpool next on the schedule as O'Neil's new-look side face an immediate test of their Premier League credentials.