Luton Town

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Luton commentators Geoff Doyle and Simon Oxley chat all things Hatters on the latest episode of Luton in the Prem, with a particular emphasis on Saturday's trip to Brentford.

Doyle said: "This is one I think Luton have a chance with with regards to away games. I have a little feeling this is one that might suit us, I'm optimistic.

Oxley replied: "Brentford are still missing Ivan Toney and have been missing him all season. They're still doing well in matches but don't seem to have found any sort of replacement for him.

"They either were not prepared for his ban or chose not to make a signing to replace him. They're almost kicking their heels waiting for him to come back and he might be sold anyway.

"They're solid enough. Arsenal needed a very late goal to get past them last week but you feel it's not one to go into with any sort of real trepidation."

Doyle added: "Bryan Mbuemo is the key figure for them alongside Yoane Wissa, so there's plenty of pace up there, but they are without one of the best strikers in the division.

"And they do have injuries, particularly in the full-back and wing-back areas. Luton have been very good down the sides so that's why I feel it's one they can go into feeling quite positive."

Listen to Luton in the Prem on BBC Sounds

Former Chelsea and Everton winger Pat Nevin speaking to BBC Sport: "Down at the bottom end of the table, Luton finally got their first home win and it was among the hardest-fought three points you will see this season. The 12 minutes of added time were torture, but I tip my proverbial hat to the Hatter fans.

"They have lost points in the dying minutes a few times already this season, but they managed to hold on with the help of the baying crowd. Suddenly what looked like a lost cause is far from that, after Everton’s merciless 10-point deduction.

"Everton’s crash has had Luton fans understandably rubbernecking at the carnage left behind. The rest of football is talking about the fighting spirit at Goodison Park and the expectation that the players and fans will be lifted by the cause, but Luton have just as much to play for and arguably more.

"What must they do now that they have a four-point cushion from the drop zone?

"They have to get some points at home. They got three at the weekend. Tick.

"There can be no, or very few, morale-sapping hammerings. They have been competitive in games since August. Tick.

"Luton also need a cause. No one expected them to survive, including me and that grates, so they will fight tooth and nail to prove everyone wrong. Tick.

"The need to make every game special, they must be hard to play against. So far, every single Premier League match at Kenilworth Road has felt like a do-or-die cup tie. Tick again.

"Do not write them off yet!"

Geoff Doyle, BBC Three Counties Radio

Luton's excellent winner against Crystal Palace was scored by Jacob Brown.

It was set up perfectly by Chiedozie Ogbene with Tahith Chong and Ross Barkley involved in the move.

Teden Mengi coolly scored the Hatters first. Thomas Kaminski was brilliant again in goal.

All of these players were recruited in the summer. Some were freebies, others cost a couple of million. The majority were signed from the Championship.

The season before that Luton spent just £2m on Carlton Morris and Alfie Doughty was signed for relative peanuts. The season before that Reece Burke and Amari'i Bell were signed on frees.

The list goes on because the recruitment at Luton has been a success story for many, many years. So who is behind the scouting? Step forward, club legend Mick Harford.

Big Mick is the Luton gift that just keeps giving through the decades. Exceptional player, coach, manager and now head of recruitment, a role he's been in for a number of years.

Harford will go down in history as one of the most important figures ever at Kenilworth Road and what he's done with recruitment - with the help of plenty along the way including current leading scouts Phil Chapple and Jay Socik - is nothing short of incredible.

Gems have been found in the lower leagues: polished, developed and turned into Premier League quality. A few years ago, I bumped into Harford scouting at an Oxford City match. He tracked Elijah Adebayo's path after watching him as a player at Fulham's academy and then signed him after seeing he had stepped up at Walsall.

Even after promotion to the Premier League, Luton did not gamble on young overseas players that are relatively cheap compared to the UK market but can struggle to adapt to the chaotic competitiveness and pressure of English football.

Instead, Harford and his team went for hungry Football League players aiming to prove a point.

The Hatters come up against Brentford this weekend and it's no coincidence that they too have a brilliant recruitment record, all be it using a different method.

The manager is the most important figure on the training ground and on the sideline but the figure in charge of player recruitment is not too far behind.

Commentary of Brentford v Luton on Digital Radio.

• Brentford have won five of their past six league games against Luton Town, including home and away victories the last time the sides met in the 2020-21 Championship campaign.

• Luton have won just one of their past 37 top-flight away games against London sides (D9 L27), beating Wimbledon 2-1 in February 1990. They’ve lost both visits to the capital this season without scoring.

• The Bees have won their past five Premier League home games against promoted sides, since losing 2-1 against Norwich City in November 2021.

• Only James Ward-Prowse (21) has created more chances from set-pieces than Luton’s Alfie Doughty this season (16). Meanwhile, of players with at least 20 chances created, only Ward-Prowse (70%) has created a higher share from set-pieces than Brentford’s Mathias Jensen (65%).

Image source, PA Media

Luton striker Jacob Brown, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club about scoring his first Premier League goal against Crystal Palace on Saturday:

"It's a great feeling. I felt quite relieved at the time getting my first goal. I think I've had quite a few chances earlier in the season so I was disappointed not to have already got a goal, but to finally get that first goal and for it to be in such a big win is a good feeling.

"The fact I was getting the chances was a positive, but the more the games go by and you're not scoring, you do start thinking about it. Now I've got that first goal, that's off my back. I can be more confident and take that into the rest of the season."

Listen to an extended interview with Luton striker Jacob Brown on BBC Sounds

Luton forward Jacob Brown told Monday Night Club that he plans to get his shirt from Saturday's victory framed after he scored his first goal in the Premier League for the club.

Listen to the full Monday Night Club episode on BBC Sounds

Only once in the past 10 years have we waited until the new year before the first managerial sacking in the Premier League. So with no bosses getting the boot so far in 2023-24, what is going on?

Former Blackpool and Crystal Palace boss Ian Holloway tells The Football News Show that teams coming up with a distinctive style is contributing to the low attrition rate and adds why he believes longevity is beneficial for all clubs.

Watch The Football News Show on BBC iPlayer

Ollie Kay, We Are Luton Town, external

So there we have it. A win at home in the Premier League. I have been adamant that our best performances have come at home and that the first home win would happen. But I have also said, it has been coming.

As correctly pointed out by Ian Wright on Match of the Day (before I go on, I want to remark on how surreal it was to be first on the running order), and as I have pointed out in previous articles, other than the first two games against Brighton and Chelsea where we conceded seven goals in total, all our other games have been incredibly tight affairs.

We should have won against Wolves, picked up something at Fulham and we experienced dropping two points at home to Liverpool.

Out of the 11 games, we have only been truly outclassed once and that was against an Aston Villa side I believe can disrupt the top six, possibly even the top four. Even in that game, it was only three conceded, which, this season, is the minimum amount of goals they have scored in each of their home games. We got off very lightly.

In total, discounting those first two games, we have conceded 16 goals in 11 matches. Compare that to the other sides promoted with us from the Championship and 'Little Luton' are going about their business with no frills, just sheer graft, determination and team spirit.

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Luton striker Jacob Brown, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club about playing under Rob Edwards:

"He's just a top guy and I can't speak highly enough of him. From the minute I spoke to him before I joined the club, I had such a good feeling. To meet him in person and see how he works, he's really good and I think he's only helping me get better as a player.

"He makes you feel confident. It's hard to explain but the environment there is around the club - it's such a great place to be. Even when we've not got good results but we've performed well, we always try to take the positives. On the grass, he's always trying to motivate you and he's someone that everyone wants to work hard for."

Leicester defender Conor Coady added: "Rob was our assistant at Wolves when I was there and I think he's top-drawer. You could see what his sessions were like and how he wanted to play football, it was fantastic.

"You look at the culture that's been created at Luton and, especially when they play at home, they look like they can win any game. The culture he and the players have created and how they're going about their business is fantastic to see and it's full credit to everyone there."

Listen to an extended interview on BBC Sounds

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Luton forward Jacob Brown says there has been confidence within the club since the moment he joined in the summer and that such belief continues to grow as the season goes on.

Listen to Monday Night club here