Luton vs Man Utd: Ten Hag’s side look to continue good Premier League form against relegation-threatened Hatters
MANCHESTER UNITED will be hoping to make it four wins on the bounce when they face Luton Town TODAY.
The Red Devils have been in good form of late having beaten the likes of Wolves, West Ham and Aston Villa in recent weeks.
Last week, Erik ten Hag's side overcame a tricky trip to Aston Villa as they won 2-1.
Striker Rasmus Hojlund continued his prolific run of scoring as he took his Premier League tally to five goals as he netted the opener.
Douglas Luiz did stab home an equaliser before United's top scorer in the league, Scott McTominay, bagged the winner in the 89th minute.
The result helped United climb up to sixth in the Premier League table as they closed the gap on Villa in fifth.
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Ten Hag hailed the win as "massive" and admitted that he was "really happy" with the way his side fought back after conceding to find the winner.
Luton Town will come into the match just one point above the bottom three.
The Hatters were beaten last time out as relegations rivals Sheffield United picked up a 3-1 win over Rob Edwards' side.
Edwards admitted that the defeat to the Blades was a "tough day" as he lamented that his side were not good enough in possession and that they had "shot themselves in the foot".
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They have been improving in recent weeks and Kenilworth Road has been a big boost to the side.
Against the top six sides on their patch, Luton have put up strong fights against the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City.
A win for Luton could lift them four points above the relegation zone and above Nottingham Forest into 16th depending on other results.
Whereas Manchester United could further close the gap on Villa in fifth to just two points with a victory.
What is their form like?
Manchester United have massively improved their results in recent weeks.
The Red Devils are unbeaten in their last six games in all competitions.
In fact, Ten Hag's side have won all but one of their matches since the turn of the year.
The only dropped points came in the 2-2 draw against Tottenham at Old Trafford in January.
Luton have only lost one match in their last five games in all competitions.
The Hatters have picked up wins over Everton in the FA Cup and against Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League.
Edward's side did lose last time out, and are now set for a tricky run of games against United and Liverpool as well as a FA Cup Fifth round tie against Manchester City."
Team news
Luke Shaw is an injury concern for United after coming off at half-time at Villa Park last Sunday.
The likes of Lisandro Martinez, Mason Mount, Anthony Martial, Tyrell Malacia, and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are long-term absentees.
For Luton, Mads Andersen and Marvelous Nakamba are unavailable for this fixture.
New January signing Daiki Hashioka could feature for the first time for the Hatters this weekend.
Who will be the star men?
For Luton Town, Ross Barkley will be an important player against Manchester United.
The former Chelsea man will have to use his experience to try and break through the Red Devils midfield.
Barkley also has a keen eye for goal as he has netted three times in the Premier League this season.
Rasmus Hojlund could be key for United as he will be keen to continue his good form.
After a slow start to life in the Premier League, Hojlund is now proving why the club forked out £72million on him last summer.
The Dane has scored five goals in his last five league appearances as well as providing two assists.
What have the managers said?
Luton boss Rob Edwards hit out at the officials following the defeat to Sheffield United.
He said: "We dominated massive spells but got punished with a 2-0 loss. I’m taking the penalties out of it.
"Neither were penalties, ours or theirs. I don’t know what a penalty is anymore.
"It’s a little bit strange, once they had theirs we appealed for ours.
"It’s not the referee’s fault, he was told to go and look at it."
Erik ten Hag has insisted that United are still playing catch up with the teams above them.
He said: "I never think in negative scenarios, I'm thinking positive.
"We know we have to catch up, but we are not there yet and still we have to catch up.
"But I think we are in a good mood and we have to keep this process going and we have to still improve.
"If we do this, with many games to play, we will see what happens."
SunSport prediction
Luton Town 1 Manchester United 3
When is Luton vs Man Utd?
- Luton Town vs Manchester United will take place on TODAY - Sunday, 18th February.
- Kick off will be at 4.30pm GMT.
- Kenilworth Road will host the fixture.
What TV channel is Luton vs Man Utd on and can it be live streamed?
- Luton Town vs Manchester United will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event/ Premier League.
- Sky Sports customers can live stream the match via the NOW app.
- Alternatively, you can follow SunSport's live blog to keep up to date with all the action from Kenilworth Road.
What are the odds?
Match result
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- Luton - 3/1
- Draw - 14/5
- Man Utd - 3/4
*Odds courtesy of Paddy Power and are correct at the time of publication.
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