After consecutive thrashings at the hands of Liverpool and Manchester City, Luton Town would be looking to hold their own against an in-form Aston Villa side looking to establish themselves as serious contenders for UEFA Champions League football.
LUT: Kaminski; Bell, Mengi, Burke; Doughty, Barkley, Clark, Kaboré; Chong, Townsend; Morris
AVL: Martínez; Moreno, Lenglet, Konsa, Cash; Ramsey, Luiz, McGinn, Bailey; Watkins, Tielemans
By the time Michael Oliver blew his whistle to signal the start of the half-time interval at Kenilworth Road, Aston Villa looked to be cruising to a rather comfortable victory that would serve to further bolster their chances of participation in Europe’s elite competition next season.
Ollie Watkins had opened the scoring after smashing home a header from a Leon Bailey corner in the 24th minute, before going on to double his personal tally less than fifteen minutes later as he latched onto a ball over the top of the Luton defence from Douglas Luiz.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut despite failing to record a single shot during the first half, Luton Town emerged from the interval as a rejuvenated side and a 66th-minute strike from Tahith Chong served to inspire a sensational comeback from Rob Edwards’ side.
It took just six further minutes for the Hatters to draw level in front of a buoyant home crowd on Saturday evening, with Carlton Morris smashing a volleyed effort past Emiliano Martínez following an Alfie Doughty free-kick.
The hosts looked the likelier side to find the winner, with Morris coming painstakingly close with a headed effort that he could only direct straight into the arms of a grateful Martínez – but football can be cruel, and it was Aston Villa Lucas Digne that had the last laugh after he nodded a Moussa Diaby cross past Thomas Kaminski in the 89th minute.
Embed from Getty ImagesAston Villa are now 11 points clear of sixth-placed Manchester United, and occupy fourth place in the Premier League table – though a fifth-placed finish will likely be enough to secure UEFA Champions League qualification.
The Villans have a tricky week ahead of them, travelling to Amsterdam to face Ajax in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League round-of-sixteen tie on Thursday before hosting Tottenham on Sunday afternoon.
As for Luton Town, they are now four points off safety and will be desperate for a positive result against Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace next Saturday to rebuild confidence ahead of a winnable streak of games.