Preview: Luton Town vs. Arsenal
For the first time in 32 years, Luton Town and Arsenal will do battle in a top-flight fixture when they square off at Kenilworth Road in Tuesday’s Premier League affair.
The Hatters fell to a 3-1 defeat to Brentford over the weekend, while Mikel Arteta’s men extended their lead at the top of the table by seeing off Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1.
For 45 minutes of Luton’s showdown with Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium, Rob Edwards’s resilient rearguard came up trumps against Thomas Frank’s frustrated forward line, but an unfortunate injury to captain Tom Lockyer would prove to be the Hatters’ downfall.
Luton’s rejigged defence was breached by Neal Maupay and Ben Mee before Jacob Brown managed to pull one back for the visitors – his second goal in as many gameweeks off the bench – but Shandon Baptiste quickly restored the Bees’ two-goal cushion in West London.
Edwards was under no illusions that Ltuton were second best throughout the afternoon and lamented “a few early Christmas gifts” that his side gave away in the freezing cold, although the Hatters remain just above the dotted line in 17th place for the time being owing to their maiden Premier League home win over Crystal Palace two weekends ago.
However, wins for Everton and Burnley over the weekend means that Luton only have a two-point buffer over their demotion rivals, and the hosts remain without a single clean sheet this season, while also failing to score in the first half of 13 of their 14 top-flight fixtures this term.
The Hatters have not been torn to shreds at their Kenilworth Road base so far this season, though – Tottenham Hotspur only won by the one goal while Liverpool were held to a score draw – but all of Manchester City, Newcastle United and Chelsea will also visit the hosts’ humble ground before 2024 rolls around.
Preview: Luton vs. Arsenal – prediction, team news, lineups
Providing Luton with the first of four successive daunting home clashes, an Arsenal side who have often struggled to lay down an early marker in games this season got off to a flyer against Wolves on Saturday, as Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard propelled the Gunners into a 2-0 lead with just 13 minutes played.
A glut of gilt-edged chances to add to their advantage passed Arsenal by, though, and Matheus Cunha gave Wolves a slice of late hope with a fine finish in front of the away end, before Eddie Nketiah inexplicably struck the post while one-on-one with stand-in goalkeeper Daniel Bentley.
The final few moments were far nervier than they should have been for the Emirates home contingent, but Arsenal did enough to surge four points clear at the top of the rankings, although with all of Manchester City, Liverpool and Aston Villa in action on Sunday, that lead will almost certainly be cut down in the coming hours.
Nevertheless, Arteta’s title-chasing troops are now riding the crest of a wave on the back of five consecutive victories in all tournaments, and their defensive record away from home in the Premier League is unrivalled, shipping just three goals in six road games throughout the campaign.
However, Luton have remarkably strung together an 11-game unbeaten streak against Arsenal at Kenilworth Road and also defeated the Gunners in the 1988 EFL Cup final to win their first major honour, but their last competitive showdown came all the way back in 1991, when none of the Gunners’ starters against Wolves had even been born.
Luton Town Premier League form:
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Arsenal Premier League form:
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Arsenal form (all competitions):
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We say: Luton Town 0-2 Arsenal
All three of Luton’s home defeats this season have been by just the one goal, but with no fewer than three fresh defensive injury concerns rearing their ugly heads, the Hatters could prove easy pickings for the league leaders on Tuesday.
Fatigue in Arteta’s camp will do the Gunners no favours either, but the Arsenal boss has plentiful options for change in all areas of the field and should oversee a sixth successive victory at Kenilworth Road, with another away clean sheet to add to the collection.