Aston Villa decided to push themselves into 5th gear once more, only for Fulham to start kicking on. Automatic promotion is done, it’s not happening. So long and thanks for all the hope!

But that doesn’t mean Villa can afford to step off the gas, at all. It’s pedal to the metal time, and the sat-nav should be guiding us to the Premier League, however, we’ve got a tournament to contend with first.

And the road to promotion truly begins anew today, against a Mick McCarthy-less Ipswich Town. The team are 0-1 without the somewhat legendary manager who has become somewhat of a rock of comfort within a domestic managerial wasteland that rotates between the same few high-profile characters season after season. Alas, he’ll find a new job, while Ipswich Town fans might be wary of a new era without Mick.

As for Aston Villa, they can afford to experiment a little bit, and play with some comfort. Still, we shouldn’t accept a loss - not against a rudderless and pondering Ipswich Town team without any aim, nor direction.

A big thanks to Bennett Berry for creating all of our match-day images throughout the season. Give him a follow.

Also, please note that as of the 12th of April, Aston Villa matches will no longer be available on mainstream US television. ESPN have launched ESPN +, a subscription service where they will be sticking Championship games.

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TV and Streaming

Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Location: Portman Road, Ipswich, England

Kick-off time: 15.00 pm UK, 10.00 am Eastern, 07.00 am Pacific

Weather: It’s meant to be a plain-old, ripe for footy, sunny day in Suffolk.

Open Match Thread: Join in the comments over on our open match thread. Up soon!

Available TV: No TV in the UK or US. BeIn Sports 2 has the game in Australia and everywhere else in the world seems to be televising the match.

Available video streaming: ESPN+ in the US, BeIn Sports Connect in Australia. No AVTV.

Other listings are available from livesoccertv.com.

Available radio: Talksport 2, BBC WM 95.6 FM (not online), AVTV (If audio doesn’t work, try using Safari).

Twitter: You can find our live updates @7500toHolte, and we’d also recommend @VillaReport for updates as well.

Holtecast: James and Dani covered the Ipswich game, and defended the legacy of Mick McCarthy.

Since it is technically a televised tie in the UK - this match will NOT FEATURE on AVTV, for an international audience. For future reference on AVTV, here’s all you need to know compiled by Phil Vogel.

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Reading material

Choose your preview: A single preview for you lot today!

The Villa Week: Talking about Veretout and kits here.

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Injuries

Aston Villa will be without Alan Hutton (who will be back next week), while Jed Steer and Axel Tuanzebe seem to be doubts for the rest of the season. Jonathan Kodjia is being rested after flaring up his recurring ankle injury, while John Terry may also be rested after missing the Cardiff and Leeds matches.

Ipswich Town won’t see David McGoldrick, Joe Garner, Dean Gerken and Teddy Bishope. Dominic Iorfa may be a miss as well, as reported by WhoScored.

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Aston Villa squad

Ipswich squad

Live twitter stream