Luton Town continue their scrap for Premier League survival against top-four chasing Aston Villa at Kenilworth Road.
Depending upon results earlier on Saturday afternoon, Luton could move to within one point of safety with a win but will stay in the relegation zone regardless of their result.
Villa meanwhile are set to stay fourth irrespective of the result but if Tottenham lose at home to Palace in a mid-afternoon kick-off, Villa can extend their gap to eight points in the scrap over the final UEFA Champions League qualification spot.
Team News
Issa Kabore is available for Luton after he was ineligible to feature in their FA Cup exit against Manchester City.
Gabriel Osho, Joseph Johnson (both illness) and Amari’i Bell (hamstring) are doubts and face late fitness checks.
Albert Sambi Lokonga, Elijah Adebayo (both hamstring), Mads Andersen (calf), Marvelous Nakamba, Jacob Brown (both knee) and Tom Lockyer (illness) remain absent.
Villa could welcome Ezri Konsa back into contention following his recovery from a knee injury.
Pau Torres (leg) could also feature but Tyrone Mings, Boubacar Kamara (both knee), Diego Carlos, Jhon Duran (both hamstring) and Emiliano Buendia (ACL) on the sidelines.
When is Kick-Off?
Luton host Villa at Kenilworth Road on Saturday 2 March at 5:30pm GMT, live on Sky Sports in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Luton lost their only previous Premier League game against Aston Villa by a 3-1 result in October 2023.
- Villa are visiting Luton at Kenilworth Road for the first time in the Premier League, but have won just one of their last 12 visits in all competitions (W1, D2, L9).
- Luton have won their last two league clashes against Villa at home by 2-0 results, albeit in the Old First Division.
- Luton’s Thomas Kaminski is the only non-English goalkeeper to have made a last man tackle in the Premier League this season.
- No Villa player has produced more passes in the top-flight this season than Douglas Luiz, with the midfielder having made 1,504 passes in 25 appearances.
Prediction
Getting past Man City was always an absolute tall order for Luton but despite being outplayed defensively, they certainly brought plenty of attacking fight which they now need to bring to their remaining games if want to stand any chance of staying up.
Villa meanwhile were excellent in their attacking play against Forest but gave away two sloppy goals defensively, so there is work to do at the back especially given their poor record at Kenilworth Road.
Luton though could do with keeping it tight defensively or scoring first because the damage was done in their last two home games by conceding early goals, which is something that Villa will look to maximise if can start like they did last weekend.
I however can see Villa winning this rather comfortably if can get on the front foot early and pressure Luton’s defence, given that the Hatters are currently in an injury crisis.
Prediction: Luton 1-3 Aston Villa
Result: Luton 2-3 Aston Villa
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