Luton Town host Manchester City in the Round of 16 of the FA Cup. The host team will go into the game coming off a 4-1 loss to Liverpool in the Premier League. Man City won 1-0 at Bournemouth on Saturday to keep up their title challenge.
Preview (Luton Town vs. Manchester City)
This season, Luton has won over many fans with their brand of football and ability to upset the major clubs. However, the Hatters come into this game coming off defeats to Sheffield United, Manchester United, and Liverpool. The team led by Rob Edwards is now in 18th place in the Premier League. They are one point behind Everton in 17th. They will play their next league game at home against Aston Villa the following weekend. Though Luton’s immediate priorities are the FA Cup, they have already earned two noteworthy away victories in the competition this year, defeating Everton by the same score in the fourth round at the end of last month and Bolton Wanderers 2-1 in the third round.
The Hatters have never won the FA Cup, but they are well-known for making it to the 1958–59 championship game and losing to Nottingham Forest 2-1 there. This season, Luton has already fallen short against Man City at Kenilworth Road. On December 10, the English champions defeated Luton 2-1 in the Premier League. They had to rally from behind after Elijah Adebayo’s goal in the last moments of the first half. The Citizens will now be hoping to advance to the tournament’s quarterfinals.
After defeating Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 away from home on January 26 and defeating Huddersfield Town 5-0 in the competition’s third round on January 7, Pep Guardiola’s team is now getting ready to face Luton, another Premier League team. Man City is vying to make it back-to-back FA Cup victories and even back-to-back trebles this season. The English champions are the current holders of the trophy. They have won the FA Cup seven times previously after defeating Manchester United 2-1 in the championship game last year.
Team News
Tom Lockyer, Marvellous Nakamba, Jacob Brown, Mads Andersen, and Alfie Doughty will all be absent from Luton once more, and Albert Sambi Lokonga will need to do late fitness tests. Adebayo is also anticipated to feel that the encounter comes too soon because the team is presently attempting to determine the cause of the striker’s thigh issue. On Tuesday, head coach Edwards is anticipated to give several squad members a chance. Tim Krul is scheduled to start in goal, while Andros Townsend and Reece Burke should also be included in the starting lineup.
Jeremy Doku, Julian Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, and Kyle Walker could all potentially make an appearance. Stefan Ortega is also anticipated to start between the posts in the FA Cup match, and given how much football he has played lately, Phil Foden might get a rest.
Luton Town 1-3 Manchester City
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