Luton Town and Brighton & Hove Albion will face each other after advancing to the FA Cup fifth round. The Hatters advanced in the cup after defeating Everton 2-1 in a thrilling match on Saturday, and Roberto De Zerbi’s team showed signs of returning to form by thrashing Sheffield United 5-2.
Preview (Luton Town vs. Brighton & Hove Albion)
Nearly four months have passed since they defeated Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park to win their first-ever Premier League match. Both teams’ recent histories will be duplicated in this Merseyside encounter on Saturday, giving Rob Edwards’ team a little more time to dream of a trip to Wembley. Tim Krul, Luton’s stand-in goalkeeper, let Jack Harrison’s strike-slip past him for the hosts’ equalizer after the unfortunate Vitaliy Mykolenko turned into his own net to open the scoring. However, Cauley Woodrow proved to be the Dutchman’s savior with the crucial goal six minutes into second-half injury time.
In addition to marking the team’s second straight 2-1 victory over Everton at their Goodison Park home, Luton’s historic victory on Saturday made it two wins on the road by that score in all competitions. The team had previously defeated Bolton Wanderers in an FA Cup match on January 16. Luton has gone four games without a loss in all competitions as a result of the winter’s dropping temperatures. The Hatters have only lost one of their last seven games since December 23. They just need just one more point to catch up to 17th-place Everton despite having played one fewer game.
Edwards’ team has lost three of their last four Premier League home games. There was little shame in narrowly losing to Arsenal, Manchester City, and Chelsea. The Toffees’ failure to defeat Fulham this week would therefore allow them to avoid the demotion trapdoor. Luton has not lost a top-flight match by more than one goal since joining the Premier League. They have only failed to open the score against Tottenham Hotspur. Meanwhile, Brighton prepared admirably for their demanding Hatters test at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane.
Team News
Luton left Goodison Park with a fifth-round spot guaranteed and no further fitness concerns, but captain Tom Lockyer and Marvelous Nakamba—a long-term knee injury sufferer—won’t be returning to the field anytime soon, and Gabriel Osho was inexplicably left off the squad to play Everton. bit Issa Kabore’s Burkina Faso advanced to the Africa Cup of Nations knockout stages, Mads Andersen’s calf injury might not heal in time for the defender to play this weekend either, keeping the right-back out of action for a little bit longer.
To increase Edwards’s bench options, midfielder Jordan Clark has returned to the team after serving an FA Cup suspension; but, Woodrow’s incredible late winner at Goodison Park is unlikely to be enough to earn him a spot in the Premier League starting lineup. Igor, the center-back, made a welcome comeback from an Achilles injury during Brighton’s thumping of Sheffield United. However, due to knee ailments, Solly March, Joel Veltman, and Julio Enciso will not play in Tuesday’s match.
Although the Barcelona loanee should be the first player out of the treatment room next month, Ansu Fati’s thigh issue is still bothering him. Meanwhile, Simon Adingra and Kaoru Mitoma are still competing at the Asian Cup and AFCON, respectively. Welbeck can compete with Evan Ferguson in the last third, and Bart Verbruggen ought to return the gloves to Jason Steele, even though Woodrow’s injury-time goal in the FA Cup may not earn him a start.
Luton Town 1-2 Brighton & Hove Albion
For more football previews, click here
