Luton Town vs Manchester United

High-flying Manchester United head to Kenilworth Road to take on relegation-battling Luton Town in a high-stakes Premier League showdown.

Luton’s hopes of securing Premier League survival took a tumble last weekend as they slumped to a 3-1 home loss to rock-bottom Sheffield United, relinquishing a three-game unbeaten league form (W1, D2). Despite commencing this round outside the bottom three, Luton’s narrow one-point lead on 18th-placed Everton highlights the significance of getting back on track after losing a top-flight game at Kenilworth Road by a multi-goal margin for the first time this season. The ‘Hatters’ made a valiant attempt to avoid defeat at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture but eventually slipped to a narrow 1-0 loss, their seventh defeat in eight competitive H2Hs since 1989 (D1). Patchy home form has seen Rob Edwards’ side alternate between losing (3) and winning (2) across their last five Premier League matches in Bedfordshire, diminishing their chances of upsetting the apple cart.

On the other hand, growing speculation over Erik ten Hag’s future at the Theatre of Dreams has seemingly ignited Manchester United’s form resurgence, with the ‘Red Devils’ winning their last three Premier League outings via an aggregate score of 9-4. But Ten Hag knows better than to rest on his laurels as his men enter this fixture eight points adrift of fourth-placed Aston Villa, a side they defeated 2-1 on their last top-flight travel. That victory marked United’s first top-flight away success against top-nine sides under the Dutch manager after 13 consecutive failed attempts beforehand (D2, L11), suggesting they might have turned the corner following an underwhelming first half of the season. Keen to build momentum ahead of the crunch period of the campaign, the visitors take this trip looking to uphold an eye-catching 14-match unbeaten league run against promoted clubs (W13, D1).