Wolves, who have been in the Premier League since 2018, have had greater success recently than the Tractor Boys, who have not been in the league since their relegation in 2002.
Nevertheless, prior to that, they spent six seasons in the EFL before being promoted; they had been demoted in 2012 and then dropped into League One for the second time in a row the year after.
In the tumultuous last fifteen years for each club, both teams have been down in League One and back up.
But having a capable squad member at the back who can keep everything together is helpful during these trying times.
One thing both Wolves and Ipswich have in common is that their respective teams have had the same defender, Christophe Berra, for at least four seasons.
| Christophe Berra’s Wolves and Ipswich stats (all competitions, as per FotMob) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | Appearances |
| 16/17 | Ipswich | 46 |
| 15/16 | Ipswich | 44 |
| 14/15 | Ipswich | 50 |
| 13/14 | Ipswich | 45 |
| 12/13 | Wolves | 32 |
| 11/12 | Wolves | 35 |
| 10/11 | Wolves | 36 |
| 09/10 | Wolves | 36 |
| 08/09 | Wolves | 15 |
Berra showed his quality at the highest level for Wolves
Berra initially relocated to England with Wolves, when he joined from his native club, Scottish Premiership side Hearts, on the final day of the January transfer window in 2009 for an alleged sum of £2.5 million.
Following a £1.5 million bid rejection in June 2008, shortly after Berra’s Scotland debut, Wolves had been chasing him for seven months before his arrival.
Hearts allegedly rejected the initial approach because they didn’t have a manager at the time.
He would assist Wolves in winning the Championship in his first half-season at Molineux, securing Wolves’ promotion return to the Premier League following a five-year absence.
Berra, who played alongside players like Richard Stearman, Jody Craddock, and Roger Johnson at the center of Wolves’ defense, would be a staple in the top division for the next three seasons.
But Wolves would be demoted in 2012, and Berra would then ask to leave the team in order to pursue a new challenge elsewhere.
Stale Solbakken, the manager of Wolves at the time, said in December 2012 that he would like to agree to a new deal with Berra following his development after they were unable to come to an agreement on a transfer.
Due to restricted playing time following Solbakken’s dismissal, Berra would eventually leave in the summer of 2013 when his contract expired. That season, Wolves were also demoted to League One.
Christophe Berra used his experience to Ipswich Town’s benefit
After failing to reach a personal terms agreement with Scottish powerhouse Rangers, Berra would later accept a two-year contract to join Suffolk, where he would rejoin with manager Mick McCarthy, who had originally signed him for Wolves.
Berra won the Supporters’ Player of the Season award in his first season in Suffolk after he established a reliable center-back partnership with Tommy Smith.
In September 2014, he inked a new three-year contract after the 2014–15 season began so successfully. During that season, Ipswich made the playoffs but fell short against fierce rivals Norwich City in the semi-finals.
But over Berra’s final two seasons at Portman Road, Town would go worse. Ipswich finished seventh in 2015–16, barely outside the play-offs, and then finished 17th in 2016–17.
When his contract expired in 2017, Berra decided to come back home and left Ipswich. He later rejoined Hearts and retired at the age of 37 following brief stints with Dundee and Raith Rovers.
At both clubs, Berra shown his amazing leadership abilities and stuck by them through good times and bad.
Even though he was never the fastest, his excellent defensive skills and keen sense of the game more than made up for it. He has great memories of his time with the Wolves and Ipswich.
GET MORE NEWS HERE