Luton Town

Luis Diaz came off the bench to salvage a point for Liverpool with a stoppage-time goal on his Premier League return at Luton.

Diaz's father remains missing after his parents were kidnapped in Colombia, and the forward lifted his shirt to show a message of "freedom for papa" after heading in Harvey Elliott's cross.

It was a poignant and remarkable conclusion to a contest in which Luton had appeared on course for a deserved first league win of the season at Kenilworth Road and a first victory over the Reds since February 1991.

Substitute Tahith Chong had steered the hosts in front from Issa Kabore's cross after a superb counter-attack with 10 minutes of the regulation 90 remaining.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from home?

Hatters fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Liverpool fans?

Follow all the reaction here

There are two games being played out in the Premier League on Sunday and we'll bring you every moment.

Follow all the action and reaction here.

Listen to commentaries of both on BBC Radio 5 Live

Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on singer-songwriter Willie J Healey, who is a Chelsea fan.

Sutton's prediction: 0-3

Luton apparently don't get spanked at home - that's what Statman Dave tells me anyway.

I am not convinced, because I remember when they played Tottenham at Kenilworth Road at the start of October, and Spurs could have been about 4-0 up in the first 15 minutes.

To be fair to the Hatters, they are making the best fist of life in the top flight out of all the promoted teams, but I don't see them coping with Liverpool's array of attacking talent.

Willie's prediction: 0-2

Read the rest of their predictions here

Millie Sian, BBC Sport

Rob Edwards has been speaking to the media before Luton Town play Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Luton are "looking forward" to playing against Liverpool at Kenilworth Road: "It's a really good occasion. These are the moments and the games that we wanted to have here. This is why we got promoted and the next thing is to prepare well and equip ourselves well in the game."

• They are not expecting anyone to return from injury ahead of the game. Edwards says the team are "down to the bare bones but there's quite a lot of teams in a similar position at the moment".

• Edwards does not want Luton to be defined by tough games but he is not treating Liverpool at home as a free hit: "It is another opportunity for us to win or, if we don't win, to get something from it."

• He accepts it will be a "difficult challenge" stopping the likes of Mohamed Salah: "Most people don't, so we've got to be really good and we've got to defend well as a team. At the right moments, we've got to be good with the ball and try to attack at the right speed."

• On relishing the tough run of fixtures and "loving the challenge" of the Premier League: "We want to try and enjoy that but again you enjoy it when you're competing and playing well. There's elements we did well last week, but there were areas we were very poor in as well, and I want us to improve on that very quickly."

• On doing the best out of all of the promoted sides at this point of the season: "We could be doing better. I know there will be a few teams who will say that they could have more points, but I think we've left some points out there. I really do."

Catch up with Friday's Premier League news conferences

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Hear live commentary of Luton Town v Liverpool on BBC Radio 5 Live from 16:30 GMT on Sunday

BBC Three Counties Radio's Simon Oxley has been speaking about Sunday's match against Liverpool on the Luton in the Prem podcast: "It's one of the crown jewels if you like of the Premier League fixture list to host Liverpool and all they bring with them in terms of history and their current status, the players they have at their disposal, their manager and the fact it's a Sunday afternoon, live across the world.

"What a week, Liverpool on Sunday and a week on Saturday going to Old Trafford. Whatever shape United are in, that is a stellar week in your fixture list.

"I saw on social media, someone pointed out Luton will have played four games in a row against European Cup winners – Forest, Villa, Liverpool and Manchester United. That just again emphasises where we are at in the season."

Listen to the podcast here

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BBC Three Counties Radio's Simon Oxley has been speaking about Sunday's match against Liverpool on the Luton in the Prem podcast: "There's always an occasion where Liverpool are having an absolute nightmare and end up on the wrong end of a shock. That has diminished this season, although they have looked fragile in defence at times. Virgil van Dijk probably is not the player he was a few years ago.

"I was reading comments online about this game being another one like Aston Villa where Luton just sit back and wait and see what happens. I am not sure how the crowd would react to that. I just wonder whether people would take that on a Sunday afternoon. I think we just need to show a bit more.

"Also, I think there will be some changes. I think Tahith Chong did enough to get the nod ahead of Isaiah Brown. That midfield area is interesting. Marvelous Nakamba will play, and one would assume Ross Barkley will play because he has now got 90 minutes under his belt."

Geoff Doyle also highlighted Liverpool's full backs as an area for Luton to exploit: "Chiedozie Ogbene could be interesting as Luton may target Kostas Tsimikas or Trent Alexander Arnold if he bombs on. They could position Ogbenne on the left to exploit the space there."

Listen to the full episode here

• This is the first meeting between Luton and Liverpool in any competition since January 2008, when the Reds won a FA Cup third-round replay 5-0 at Anfield.

• Liverpool have attempted the second-most shots in the Premier League this season (174), and have the highest expected goals total (22.4).

• Luton have scored six of their nine Premier League goals this season in the final 10 minutes of games, with only Arsenal (seven) scoring more in that timeframe.

• Only three players have created more chances in the Premier League this season than Liverpool’s Dominik Szoboszlai (25). Against Nottingham Forest, he became the second Hungarian to assist two goals in a Premier League game after Zoltan Gera.

• Only James Ward-Prowse (16) has created more chances via set plays than Luton’s Alfie Doughty (14) this season. Doughty has also made 23 successful crosses, with only Kieran Trippier producing more (31).

Geoff Doyle, BBC Three Counties Radio

Luton had a really tough one last weekend in the Midlands. They were up against an Aston Villa side who are outstanding at home and scoring goals for fun under manager Unai Emery.

As such, the Hatters tactics were defensive and very clear from the start. Their shape was as compact as you could get. A back line of five, a middle set of four and Carlton Morris up top.

The gaps between each line were minimal. Keep space to a minimum, don’t press and lose shape, and stop Villa going pass, pass, pass and getting in.

Although a bit frustrating to watch you could understood why those tactics were employed. As defender Gabe Osho told me afterwards: “I can imagine it’s a bit hard to watch for our fans but I think it's important for us to stay concentrated."

Such was the quality of Villa, they worked out a way through, using curved runs from wing-backs Matty Cash and Lucas Digne and balls over the top. They won at a canter.

Against these good teams the idea seems to be to try and stay in the game for as long as possible and then try and nick one to set up a contest.

But it felt a bit like like damage-limitation at Villa Park and the scary thing for Luton is their opponents on Sunday, Liverpool, are even better. I expect the Hatters to play a similar way at Kenilworth Road.

Many feel Luton should be using their tight, intense home ground to their advantage to earn the majority of their points but the Hatters are probably going to have to pick their moments to give it a right go at home and this isn’t one of them. Crystal Palace at home in a few weeks is.

Defeat to Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool won't be unexpected but Hatters fans shouldn't lose too much sleep over it. The levels of the Premier League, as we anticipated, are glaringly obvious.

Listen to live commentary of Luton v Liverpool on BBC Three Counties Radio and Online at BBC Sounds.

Hit 'Follow' at the top of this page and if you are using the BBC Sport app, tap the bell icon to get Luton news, analysis, podcasts and more sent to you

Ollie Kay, We Are Luton Town, external

Another gameweek and another reminder that there are no easy games in this league. All fans were expecting a loss against a team who are currently the most in form at home, in Europe at the moment.

Quite frankly, you can call me negative, but I am happy that it only minimally impacted our goal difference. We could have gone to Villa Park and easily have been hit for six like Brighton were.

However, we move on, this time to a home game against Liverpool. Crikey, it really doesn’t get any easier in this league. Regardless, after back-to-back away games, this is where Luton Town can finally draw a line in the sand and show the Premier League the power of Kenilworth Road.

Although the majority of our points have come away from home, it is without doubt that our best performances of the season so far have come at Kenilworth Road. The fans and players all need to be ready for what comes next, and we need to stop giving so much respect to the teams that we face.

I want to close off by mentioning both Ross Barkley and Andros Townsend, who have both shown in their limited minutes with the club so far that they are both absolute class acts on the pitch.

If we are to dig our heels in this season, they are both old heads in this league, and need to grab the team by the scruff of the neck to demand more points on the board.

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Image source, Reuters

Luton defender Gabe Osho spoke to BBC Three Counties Radio after his first Premier League appearance for Luton ended in defeat at Aston Villa: "It's good to be back there, but it's frustrating not to get anything out of the game. For me personally it's a proud moment for me to play in the Premier League, but as a team we've got to do a little better.

"It was probably a perfect game for me to come back into against sharp players. With Ollie Watkins, [Moussa] Diaby and all the rest of them, it was good to come back in at that level.

"For 60 minutes it was OK. I started to get a bit tight but that's expected after three, four months out. I feel good, I should be able to go when the manager next calls upon me.

"I can imagine it is a bit hard to watch for our fans, but it is important to be concentrated as a team. There are going to be games this season where we are not going to have a lot of the ball so when we do get the two or three opportunities, we need to make them count.

"We have had incredible support. When you are 3-1 down, you are expecting to get pelters but it was not that. They kept supporting until the end of the game and even after the game. It's an honour to be a part of that.

"I'm excited [to play Liverpool on Sunday], These are the games that you grow up wanting to play in, and measure yourself in. It will be a tough but I am excited."

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We asked for your views on Sunday's game between Aston Villa and Luton Town.

Here are some of your comments:

Aston Villa fans

Phil: It's almost bred into us that we will falter and lose games we should win. Pessimism is now a bad word while optimism is the belief Uni has installed in the team and the fans. Dare we believe...? Oh yes.

Anthony: That was a possible Villa 'banana skin' avoided! We are playing well against everyone but you can’t help thinking it will be a side in the bottom five that will trip us up at home. It's good to see we're scoring goals for fun but a second quality goalscorer is needed in case Watkins gets injured.

Mike: Some exciting times on the horizon for Villa, with another solid performance today. I'm happy with the progress of the team. Unai is starting to make his mark and the team are working hard to stick to the game plan. What happened to Jhon Duran today?

Luton fans

Molly: A well deserved win for Villa. They played at a high standard, which is mirrored by the match statistics. Nobody thought today would be easy so I’m proud of the club for giving it their all. I think the end result was a fair summary of the game and both own goals were unlucky. Come on you Hatters!

Sue: I still feel positive. If we could be a little bit more savvy for longer and start to attack sooner, it would make the opposition work a bit harder and surprise them. Still, I'm keeping the faith as it’s not Christmas yet. Elijah Adebayo is classy. He needs a bit more time then he will be a scoring machine again.

Freddy: Why does Rob Edwards always come out with, "We will learn from this"? He doesn't have a clue.

Mark Chapman introduces highlights and analysis of Friday and Saturday's five Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day 2, then fear not- you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer here.

And Match of the Day brings you a round-up of Friday and Saturday's games here.

Listen back to Sunday's commentaries in full on BBC Sounds:

West Ham 0-1 Everton

Manchester United 0-3 Manchester City

Luton boss Rob Edwards speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "Villa are an outstanding team who are in a great moment, very confident and very clear in what they want to do. They made it very tough for us but it was good learning, I would say, for us.

"We will come up against teams like this, who are in good form, and there were times when we did things well. There are bits of us to learn and improve on. This game was never going to define our season but we have to make sure it makes us better.

"The goals were all avoidable, they were all disappointing.

"We are missing some players, which made us go down to the bare bones in the back unit, but I love this group of players. There is a really strong bond with the fans and that is really important this season. We have to stick together. Our strength will be sticking together."

• This was Aston Villa’s 20th win in the Premier League this calendar year, with only Manchester City winning more such games in 2023. It is Villa's most Premier League victories in a single year since winning 21 in 1998.

• Luton have made their worst ever start to a season across the top four tiers (five points in opening 10 games), overtaking their previous worst tally at this stage of a season (six points in 1997-98, 1962-63 and 1950-51).

• This was the second Premier League game to see both sides score an own goal this season, alongside Fulham vs Sheffield United earlier this month.

• Douglas Luiz became the first Aston Villa player to be directly involved in a goal across each of his last seven Premier League home appearances (seven goals, one assist). Among South American players, only Luis Suarez has gone on a longer such run in the competition (run of eight between April 2013 and January 2014).

• Only Ollie Watkins (27) has been involved in more Premier League goals for Aston Villa than Douglas Luiz (16) since Unai Emery’s first game in charge in November 2022.

Gary Rose, BBC Sport

Facing a side who had won their last 11 consecutive games at home, this was always going to be a difficult task for Luton.

They went into it buoyed by their fight back from two-goals down against Nottingham Forest in their previous outing to draw 2-2.

Similarly battling qualities did materialise in the final couple of minutes of this game but by then it was too little too late.

Luton could perhaps have been more adventurous - failing to manage a shot on goal until the hour mark - but this was another reminder of just how difficult it is in the Premier League.

Aston Villa claimed their fifth win in six Premier League games with a comfortable victory over Luton Town at Villa Park.

John McGinn opened the scoring in the first half with his fourth goal of the season, controlling the ball from a corner before firing into the back of the net.

Moussa Diaby added a second soon after the break as he drove home from inside the box. The forward was also instrumental in the third, as he used his pace to chase a ball over the top before his cross was turned in by Luton captain Tom Lockyer for an own goal.

Luton never looked like getting anything from the game and failed to manage a shot on goal until the hour mark, when Ross Barkley sent a rising effort from distance well over the bar.

But they did get a consolation late on, in unusual circumstances, as a header by Villa defender Ezri Konsa bounced back off the bar and in off goalkeeper Emi Martinez.

The win means Villa have an impressive 22 points from 10 Premier League games, as they continue their fine form under manager Unai Emery.

Defeat for Luton, meanwhile, leaves them in the relegation zone and one point from safety.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from home?

Villa fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Hatters fans?

Follow all the reaction here

There are five games being played in the Premier League on Sunday, including the Manchester derby, and we'll bring you every moment.

Follow all the action and reaction here

Live commentaries:

• West Ham v Everton - BBC Radio 5 Live

• Manchester United v Manchester City - BBC Radio 5 Live

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on the stars of two CBBC shows - Tash, who features in The Football Academy, and Gabe from Jamie Johnson FC.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

Out of the three promoted teams, Luton are the ones who have surprised me the most so far and they showed they had a bit about them when they fought back from 2-0 down to draw with Nottingham Forest last week.

Fighting back for a point at the City Ground was a good sign but, let's be honest, going to Villa Park is a much tougher task.

Aston Villa are on fire, especially at home, and the goals they are scoring through Ollie Watkins and his link-up with Moussa Diaby makes them very hard to stop.

Tash's prediction: 4-0

Gabe's prediction: 2-0

Read their full predictions here

Image source, Getty Images

Andros Townsend feels he has an important role as a senior player in the Luton squad and wants to do all he can to help the Hatters stay in the Premier League.

Speaking to BBC Three Counties Radio, the former Tottenham and Everton winger said: "The problem was when I was younger I didn’t listen, there was always people trying to tell me and help me, but I didn’t listen. The good thing about this group is that everyone has got their head screwed on, there’s no bad eggs in that dressing room.

"Whether that be a 31-year-old or a 20-year-old or a youngster coming through that 17, 18, 19 - everyone wants to listen and learn so hopefully if I can impart some wisdom with my words or the way I conduct myself on a day-to-day basis then I have done my job as a senior professional."

The 32-year-old joined Luton on a short-term contract until January and has already seen the importance of having the right attitude at the club.

The ex-England international added: "I just think the way the club is, they sign good people as well as good players, obviously there are good players out there available on the cheap but they might not have the right attitude.

"This club have made the point in saying 'no, we’re going to make sure we have the right mentality in the dressing room, we don’t want to spoil what we have because we got to the Premier League based on good team spirit and we don’t want to ruin that'.

"I think one of the first conversations I had with the manager and Gary [Sweet, chief executive] was yes, we want to see you on the pitch but are you good for this dressing room?

"It’s rare to have 25 players all pulling in the right direction whether they’re in the team, on the bench, or in the stands and I think you saw that in the game against Nottingham Forest. It was a real squad performance to get a hard-earned point, but we’re going to need more moments like that from everyone if we’re going to get enough points to survive."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

Image source, BBC Sport

Aston Villa host Luton Town on Sunday with the Hatters looking to be the first team in 12 matches to take points off Unai Emery's team at Villa Park.

Emery believes the Villans' 11-game home winning streak only serves to add extra motivation for visiting teams.

"I think it's increasing the challenge for the opponent because they are coming here thinking it's difficult to win," he said in his press conference on Friday.

"It is a great challenge coming here trying to break it."

Despite the record the hosts have going into Sunday's match, Luton manager Rob Edwards is positive in his ambitions for the trip to Birmingham.

"We always believe we can get something from any game," he said.

"We believe we have a good plan.

"They are a team on on the up, with a brilliant manager. It's not scary. If I was scared I'm in the wrong business.

"Its a tough game, we will have to be better than we were against Forest. We are in the mix, we are comfortable where we are at, we are competing well.

"We have taken five points from the last five games, as long as we are in the mix we will be ok."

Rob Edwards has been speaking to the media before Luton face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• On whether Ross Barkley has surprised him, Edwards said: "His football hasn’t surprised me, but he's a really deep thinker, a really intelligent football brain which I knew he would have but the way he communicated and talks to the players has surprised me in a good way. A good help for us."

• On if picking up points at Kenilworth Road has been more difficult, he said: "Performances in general have been good at home, we've just got more points away, that's just how it’s worked at the moment. It would be nice if we could get some wins at home but however they come we’ll take them."

• On if he enjoys people thinking the Hatters have no chance of staying up, he said: "The outside influences we can't affect. Everyone will have their opinions and that's fine."

• On what improvements his side can make, Edwards added: "I thought there were some good performances against Forest. But as a team I thought we could be better. We need to retain ball better and switch on in moments. I want and need more on Sunday."

• On Aston Villa, he said: "It will be a big task against one of the most in-form teams in the league."

• He added: "Everyone will know their roles and responsibilities on the day and we’ve got to perform, we know how to get something from this game, maybe they’ve got to have a bit of an off day as well."

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