Simon Jordan makes Ipswich Town revelation in comparison to Leicester City | OneFootball

Former Crystal Palace owner and talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan believes Ipswich Town's achievements in the Championship this season are more impressive than Leicester City.

Ipswich were promoted from League One last season, and they have seamlessly made the step up to the second tier, spending much of the season so far in the automatic promotion places.

The Tractor Boys were held to a 2-2 draw by Norwich City in the East Anglian derby at Portman Road on Saturday, but they remain second in the table, 10 points clear of third-placed Leeds United and fourth-placed Southampton.

Ipswich's promotion credentials are likely to be tested over the festive period, with a crucial game against Leeds at Elland Road on Saturday before they welcome leaders Leicester to Suffolk on Boxing Day, but positive results in those matches would put Kieran McKenna's side in an incredibly commanding position.

Leicester restored their lead at the top of the table to three points after a 3-2 win over Birmingham City at St Andrew's on Monday night, and they are back in action when they face bottom side Rotherham United at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.

Jordan: Ipswich Town deserve more credit than Leicester City

Jordan praised both Ipswich and Leicester for their outstanding starts to the season, but he believes that the Tractor Boys form is more impressive considering the respective budgets of the two clubs.

"In one instance, Leicester City, they sold a lot of players, but they still brought in £50 million worth of players in the summer," Jordan said on talkSPORT.

"They still had the bones of a former Premier League side that underachieved.

"The more commendable performance is Ipswich Town's because they've spent next to nothing, and this is about a manager getting a group of players together and coaching them into a side.

"Of course that's what Leicester City have done as well, and both sides' points tally after 22 games is quite remarkable.

"Given the fact that they're going into January with the potential of really doubling down, you might find they put a little bit of investment into supporting the team in January and give themselves a little bit more opportunity by buying a couple of players."

What next for Ipswich Town and Leicester City?

It has been an excellent season so far for Ipswich and Leicester.

While Maresca deserves plenty of credit for the Foxes' start to the campaign, Jordan is right that Ipswich's form is more impressive considering that McKenna has largely stuck with the same group of players that achieved promotion from League One last season.

Both teams look in a strong position to maintain their challenge for a Premier League return, and as Jordan says, they could both spend in January, with journalist Alan Nixon reporting that Ipswich will give McKenna up to £3 million to spend on a striker next month.