Ipswich Town vs Rayo Vallecano: Leif Davis double inspires impressive pre-season victory

Ipswich Town delivered one of their most convincing performances of pre-season by beating La Liga side Rayo Vallecano 3-0 at Portman Road, with Leif Davis scoring twice before Emersonn opened his account for the club.

Kjell Scherpen and Florentino Luis also made their Ipswich debuts as Gary O'Neil's side produced an encouraging display ahead of next weekend's final friendly against Union Berlin.

Ipswich made the brighter start and almost opened the scoring inside three minutes when Marcelino Núñez struck the crossbar after capitalising on a defensive mistake.

The breakthrough arrived in the 12th minute as Emersonn's clever pass released Davis, whose low effort found the net after goalkeeper Augusto Batalla failed to keep it out.

Five minutes later, the pair combined again. Emersonn linked play on the edge of the box before Sindre Walle Egeli found Davis, who drilled another low finish beyond Batalla to double Ipswich's advantage.

The hosts continued to control proceedings, with Emersonn, Walle Egeli and Daizen Maeda all causing problems for the Rayo defence.

New signing Florentino Luis produced one of the moments of the first half with an excellent pass over the defence, allowing Emersonn to guide a composed header beyond Batalla for his first Ipswich goal.

The Brazilian impressed throughout, not only scoring but also playing a key role in both of Davis' goals with his movement, hold-up play and intelligent link-up.

Florentino also caught the eye on his debut, while Scherpen recovered well from a couple of nervous moments to produce important saves when called upon.

Gary O'Neil made several changes after the break, introducing Chuba Akpom, Jack Clarke and Anis Mehmeti as Ipswich continued to create chances despite the drop in tempo.

Akpom, Mehmeti and Cameron Humphreys all went close to extending the lead, while Rayo Vallecano also threatened on several occasions but were unable to beat Scherpen or substitute goalkeeper Kayne van Oevelen.

The result extended Ipswich's encouraging pre-season and offered further evidence that several of the club's summer arrivals are beginning to settle quickly.

Ipswich Town conclude their pre-season campaign with an away fixture against Bundesliga side Union Berlin next weekend. Gary O'Neil is expected to continue building match fitness across his squad before the Blues begin their Premier League campaign, with several new signings pushing for starting places after impressing against Rayo Vallecano.