Luton Town boss Rob Edwards believes this afternoon’s clash against Sheffield United will be a difficult assignment for his team.
However, speaking to the Hatters’ media team, he believes his side could lean on their decent record at Bramall Lane to get a much-needed result away from home.
The Hatters have endured a fairly rough start to the season, winning two, drawing two and losing four of their opening eight league games of the 2024/25 campaign.
For a side that have just been relegated from the Premier League, that record is nowhere near good enough.
They had an opportunity to climb up the table on Tuesday, and after taking a 2-0 lead against Oxford United, many people would have backed them to secure the win.
But goals from Tyler Goodrham and Ruben Rodrigues made sure that the U’s took a point away from Kenilworth Road.
Luton could have even lost that game, but they managed to pick up a point, and that at least gives them something to build on today.
But they face an even trickier task today, as they make the trip to face promotion competitors United, who have done very well during the early stages of this term.
They are the only side to have gone unbeaten in the Championship so far this season.
A win this afternoon would take them level on points with leaders Sunderland, who secured a late draw against Leeds United last night.
| Championship table (1st-4th) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (As of October 5th, 2024) | P | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Sunderland | 9 | 10 | 19 |
| 2 | Burnley | 8 | 10 | 17 |
| 3 | Leeds United | 9 | 8 | 16 |
| 4 | Sheffield United | 8 | 7 | 16 |
And considering Luton’s struggles this term, Chris Wilder’s side have to be classed as real favourites to win this afternoon’s tie, although a win isn’t guaranteed.
Rob Edwards on potential Luton Town advantage ahead of Sheffield United
Luton have won both of their games at Bramall Lane under Edwards, securing a 1-0 win there during the 2022/23 campaign and a 3-2 victory last season.
Alfie Doughty’s strike and two own goals helped the Hatters to secure that 3-2 win – and Edwards believes their decent recent record at Bramall Lane could serve them well again today.
He said: “They have a settled team and a consistent way of playing and it will be a big challenge.
David Wilkinson has revealed that the Hatters won’t make a knee-jerk decision despite a slow start to the 2024/25 campaign.
“It was tough the other night [against Oxford] but on reflection and after processing and reviewing it, we’ve had a good couple of days and I’m looking forward to it.”
Luton Town will need to be on top form to stop Sheffield United
The Hatters didn’t perform that well on Tuesday.
Even though they took a 2-0 lead, they conceded quite a few chances at the time, and it’s no surprise that Oxford were able to get themselves on the scoresheet twice.
The U’s have done well this term and this is why the 2-2 result wasn’t that bad on paper.
However, they face an even more difficult task this afternoon.
And if they are to take anything from the game, they will need to be on top form.
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