Sports Mole previews Wednesday’s Championship clash between Luton Town and Sunderland, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Aiming to record back-to-back wins for the second time this season, Luton Town will host early pacesetters Sunderland at Kenilworth Road for a Championship clash on Wednesday night.
The Hatters managed a thumping success over local rivals Watford on the weekend, whilst the Black Cats snatched all three points at the home of Hull City on Humberside.
Match preview
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Following a sobering two-goal defeat at Sheffield United prior to October’s international break – leading to criticism from supporters directed at head coach Rob Edwards – Luton responded in perfect fashion on Saturday afternoon, comfortably beating local rivals Watford.
In what was easily their best performance of the 2024-25 campaign to date, the Hatters inflicted three doses of goalscoring pain on Tom Cleverley‘s Hornets, with midfielder Jordan Clark, striker Carlton Morris and substitute Jacob Brown all breaching the net of Daniel Bachmann.
After earning their third win of the second-tier term, Luton are currently occupying 17th position in the Championship table after 10 matches, three points ahead of 22nd-placed Cardiff City but already seven points behind Blackburn Rovers, who sit in the lowest of the playoff spots.
Collecting seven of their 11 Championship points at home so far in 2024-25, the Hatters will be happy to be back at Kenilworth Road so soon after Saturday’s smashing of Watford, with Wednesday’s hosts aiming for consecutive home victories for the first time since April 2023.
Many of Luton’s star performers in the Premier League last season are struggling to have a seismic impact on the second tier so far, with striker Elijah Adebayo failing to find the net across 10 Championship starts to date despite bagging 10 goals in the top flight during the 2023-24 term.
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After finishing a mammoth 41 points behind Championship winners Leicester City by the conclusion of the 46-game schedule, Sunderland are currently leading the promotion-chasing pack at the head of the division, sitting three points ahead of third-placed Leeds United after 10 contests.
The Black Cats showcased their powers on the road on Sunday afternoon, when a mazy solo run and finish from summer arrival Wilson Isidor sealed a one-goal success over Hull at MKM Stadium, with the visitors limiting the Tigers to just a single shot on target across the 90 minutes.
Since the 2-1 defeat at Vicarage Road versus Watford on September 28, Sunderland have collected seven points from three Championship matches versus newly-promoted Derby County, title-hunting Leeds and Tim Walter‘s Hull, representing a near-flawless October schedule to date.
Both of the Black Cats’ second-tier defeats have arrived away from the Stadium of Light so far, with Regis Le Bris‘s troops failing to earn anything tangible from contests against Plymouth Argyle and the aforementioned Hornets.
Chris Rigg and Romaine Mundle are among the new stars stepping up to the plate for Sunderland but 2022 arrival Patrick Roberts also deserves plenty of praise, with the former Manchester City attacker returning to his best after providing just two assists across 32 Championship appearances last season.
Luton Town Championship form:
Sunderland Championship form:
Team News
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Luton remain without the services of centre-back Mads Andersen, who has featured in just the single Championship match this season due to a leg injury.
The Hatters’ options at centre-back are further reduced by the absence of Teden Mengi, with the 22-year-old missing Saturday’s win over Watford because of a knock.
Following an assist in the first half, defender Tom Holmes was forced off, meaning that he could be replaced by Daiki Hashioka in the XI on Wednesday night.
Sunderland right-back Niall Huggins is expected to be sidelined until after the New Year, so Northern Ireland international Trai Hume will continue as the undisputed choice in that position.
Returning from injury, Black Cats centre-back Dan Ballard might have difficulty forcing his way back into the side immediately due to the performances of Luke O’Nien and Chris Mepham.
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Kaminski; Burke, McGuinness, Johnson; Moses, Krauss, Clark, Doughty; Chong, Adebayo, Morris
Sunderland possible starting lineup:
Patterson; Hume, Mepham, O’Nien, Cirkin; Rigg, Neil, Bellingham; Roberts, Mundle, Isidor
We say: Luton Town 1-1 Sunderland
Following their thumping of Watford on the weekend, Luton should be confident of recording a positive result under the lights at Kenilworth Road once again despite the league leaders being in town.
Sunderland cruised to victory over Hull last time out, although we believe that the Hatters will be more of nuisance, leading to a share of the spoils in Bedfordshire.
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