Pep gives it a rest ahead of Real visit
second on the hour. Rico Lewis was trusted, Julian Alvarez was given a nod.
Injury-hit Luton, who have lit up this division at various points and are not adrift like their fellow promoted teams, do feel like something of a throwback to Blackpool 13 years ago: gumption, a no-fear attitude and presenting a general surprise. Dial the brightness up on Luton’s shirts and you could be looking at the same team.
Like Blackpool, their run since Christmas is deeply alarming — despite the recent victory over Bournemouth — and there must be some concern that the tide cannot be turned to avoid relegation. Actually in the squad during that Blackpool season, Rob Edwards saw first-hand how this league can swallow teams whole.
The difference between those two clubs is the head coach. While Ian Holloway’s stubbornness proved his undoing, Edwards is a tactician whose dexterity could yet haul Luton out of trouble.
‘Today was the hardest game we’ve had all season, I’m glad it’s done,’ Edwards said. ‘Hopefully we get some bodies back and now we go into five games where we believe we can get results. Today was never going to derail us.’
Luton didn’t register a touch in City’s box until the 66th minute, already two behind, when Cauley Woodrow struck the bar. Shots rained down on Thomas Kaminski, flying around to thwart the returning Kevin De Bruyne — sick for Real on Tuesday — and Josko Gvardiol, threatening to repeat his Bernabeu trick. He would manage it much later, thrashing in with his right foot again.
Daiki Hashioka had given City a lead 66 seconds in, a wayward Erling Haaland volley smashing the Japanese defender flush in the face and deflecting past Kaminski. Haaland had initially fluffed the move when clean through.
Haaland later had his goal with 13 minutes left from the penalty spot. Jeremy Doku had been clipped by a tiring Fred Onyedinma and Haaland sent Kaminski the wrong way, soon then taken off. His father, Alfie, had suggested earlier that the criticism of the top scorer — this his 20th in the league — was driven by a
Roy Keane ‘agenda’. And we all know what that means.
Seconds after that substitution, Nunes gave cheap possession away and Ross Barkley worked an angle to strike across Ederson — back in for Stefan Ortega after injury — and Luton had their consolation that a more progressive second half probably deserved.
Doku was making his case and capped off a fine display by scaring Onyedinma again, the makeshift defender backing off to allow the Belgian to nestle into the far corner, while Gvardiol hit No5 during stoppage time.
Madrid here on Wednesday and then an FA Cup semi three days later. A big week indeed — and Guardiola won’t need to rest half of the team again.
MANCHESTER CITY (4-2-3-1): Ederson; Lewis, Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol; Nunes, Kovacic; Alvarez, De Bruyne (Gomez 81), Doku; Haaland (Bobb 81). Subs (not used): Ortega, Walker, Ake, Rodri, Silva, Grealish, Foden. Booked: De Bruyne.
LUTON TOWN (3-4-2-1): Kaminski; Hashioka, Burke, Doughty; Onyedinma (Nelson 88), Berry (Mpanzu 77), Barkley, Chong; Townsend (Woodrow 59), Clark (Johnson 88); Morris.
Subs (not used): Chigozie, Shea, Krul, Piesold, Harris. Booked:
Referee: John Brooks. Attendance: