Luton Town’s Visit to Anfield: Reds Face Tricky Test

Liverpool face Luton Town in a huge Premier League clash on Wednesday, where a victory for the Reds would provisionally move them five points clear at thew top of the table. Jurgen Klopp’s men come into this one in fine form, off the back of an impressive 4-1 away win at Brentford on Saturday.

In contrast, Luton Town come into Wednesday’s game off the back of a 2-1 home defeat to Manchester United. Despite the result, the Hatters put in another impressive performance and was perhaps even good value for a point in that one.

On paper, many will be expecting a comfortable Liverpool victory on Wednesday but Rob Edwards’ side will undoubtedly prove to be a tricky test. Many Reds will remember the frustrating 1-1 draw at Kenilworth Road back in October, where late Luis Diaz header rescued a point.

Recent Form:

Despite their defeat to Man United on Sunday, Edwards’ men had been in pretty fine form. Prior to their two latest defeats to Sheffield United and Man United, Luton had smashed Brighton & Hove Albion 4-0 and secured an impressive point at Newcastle United in a thrilling 4-4 draw.

These two results show the sort of goal-scoring form that Luton have been in lately. The Hatters have scored in 12 successive Premier League games now. You would have to look all the way back to their 1-0 defeat at Manchester United in November for the last time they failed to score in a league match.

However, as solid as Luton’s performances have been, they have only managed one win in their last six Premier League games. The Hatters currently sit 17th in the table, just one point above Everton in the relegation zone.

Impressive Performances Against the Big Boys:

Perhaps the biggest shock of Luton Town’s season so far has been their impressive record against the top sides. They took points off Liverpool earlier in the season, before drawing and beating Newcastle United in recent months.

Edwards’ men have also pushed the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea to their limits, too. Those performances haven’t all been defensively stubborn either, scoring three against Arsenal and twice against Chelsea.

Key Threats:

Carlton Morris

There were lots of questions surrounding Morris ahead of this season, about whether he could step up the standard of the Premier League. The 28-year-old has definitely proved his critics wrong, scoring seven goals and assisting six across his 24 Premier League appearances.

Morris got himself on the scoresheet once again on Sunday, proving his aerial threat once again as he bundled the ball past Onana. In the absence of Elijah Adebayo, Morris has definitely stepped up and will look to cause Liverpool’s defence problems.

Ross Barkley

The former Everton midfielder has been an absolute revelation since his arrival from Nice in the summer. Barkley has been labelled by many as a potential contender for ‘Signing of the Season’.

The 30-year-old has nailed himself down as an integral part of Edwards’ plans across his 19 Premier League appearances. Across those appearances, the midfielder has scored three and assisted three goals.

Thomas Kaminski

The Belgian keeper has won a lot of plaudits for his performances for Luton Town so far this season. Despite only keeping two clean sheets in his 24 appearances this season, Kaminski has undoubtedly won a solid amount of points for Luton.

Kaminski ranks amongst the league’s top keepers statistically, making an obscene amount of saves per 90 compared to most of the league. The 31-year-old will have to be in fine form on Wednesday in order to keep Klopp’s high-flying forwards quiet.

Score Prediction:

As tough as this test could be for Liverpool, I still expect them to come out as comfortable winners in the end. The quality of the likes of Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Alexis Mac Allister will ultimately prove to be too much for Luton Town.

Liverpool 3-0 Luton Town