Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman has admitted that something has to change at Ipswich Town following their recent downturn in form.

Since the turn of the year, the Tractor Boys have only managed to amass 15 points in League One from a possible 33 on offer which has resulted in them slipping to eighth in the standings.

After suffering three consecutive defeats in third-tier, it seemed as if Ipswich had managed to get back on track earlier this month by securing a 4-1 victory over Burton Albion at Portman Road.

However, the Tractor Boys failed to build upon this display last weekend as they slumped to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Oxford United.

Matt Taylor scored what turned out to be the winning goal for the Yellows in the first-half as he slotted past goalkeeper Tomas Holy.

Currently eight points adrift of the automatic promotion places, Ipswich may now have to switch their focus to securing a play-off place in May.

Speaking to the Sky Sports EFL Podcast about Ipswich's recent plight, Goodman revealed that he is concerned for Ipswich who he believes need to get on a run to seal a top-six finish.

The 53-year-old said: "On the fifth of October, Ipswich were top, they were flying and you couldn't possibly see the terrible run of form that they would go on.

"It is concerning because they are really struggling against the teams in the top-half, they have won four of 18 games against these sides.

"And actually, if you look at teams in the top-five, they have won none of nine.

"That tells you that they just don't seem to be competing with the so-called better teams and the bad news is, they play Fleetwood Town, Coventry City and Portsmouth all in the next five games.

"Something has to change for Ipswich."

Goodman later added: "They need to pick things up, they showed in the early part of the season what they are capable of and they need to go on a good run now just to get into the play-offs."

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The Verdict

When you consider how poor Ipswich have been in recent months, manager Paul Lambert will know that he has a huge task on his hands to transform their fortunes between now and the end of the season.

Set to face Blackpool on Saturday, it is imperative that the Tractor Boys seal a positive result at Bloomfield Road as a failure to do so could see them lose further ground in the hunt for the play-offs.

Given that Kayden Jackson and James Norwood are both set to miss this fixture, it will be intriguing to see who Lambert opts to start up-front against the Tangerines.

By beating Blackpool this weekend, Ipswich may be able to use the momentum gained from this result to push on in League One over the coming weeks.