Luton boss could look to attack as he relishes extra pressure being put on Palace clash

Luton boss Rob Edwards insists both he and his players are relishing the extra pressure that comes with taking on a Crystal Palace side this afternoon in a game many have labelled as ‘must-win’ for the Hatters’ Premier League survival hopes this season.

With the first 12 matches of the top flight campaign completed before the international break, Town’s 1-0 defeat at Manchester United means they are on six points so far, although remain outside of the drop zone following Everton’s points deduction last week that saw the Toffees drop into the bottom three.

The Hatters’ home form was meant to spearhead their attempts to stay up, but it hasn’t panned out that way yet, Edwards’ side taking just two points out of a possible 15.

With the Eagles in town today, and then Luton at Brentford next weekend, it represents, on paper, the best chance of collecting three points in front of their own fans before the turn of year, as Town welcome Arsenal, Manchester City, Newcastle and Chelsea afterwards.

Edwards accepted the heightened anticipation that came with that though, and believes it is something that will see his squad flourish, as he said: “There are games where you can target points a little bit more than others. I know the expectancy in these next two games compared to Arsenal and Manchester City.

"The expectation will be a bit different on us, maybe a little bit more pressure and we’ve got to be able to handle that and cope with it. I quite like that though and our players have stepped up well in pressurised situations in this last year since we’ve been at the club, so I think they’re going to relish it as well.

"We’ll look forward to those games as and when they come, but right now it’s Crystal Palace and we feel really good about it.

“We’ve talked about winning the game but we can’t guarantee that. There’s a process and you have to try and stick to your plan and work very, very hard and earn it.

"There’s an opposition team that are really good and I’ve got to stress that. They’ve got players who can play for any team in this league, they really have. (Eberechi) Eze and (Michael) Olise, they’ve got a couple of young talents who are top, so this isn’t an easy game and I don’t think anyone should be turning up at the Kenny thinking we have to win and we’re going to win no problem as we’re at home.

"There’s no easy game in this league, they’ve got some outstanding players and a manager who’s vastly experienced as well, so it’s not must win, but it’s a game that we can target and our next opportunity.”

With Issa Kabore ruled out with concussion, while attacker Chiedozie Ogbene is a doubt as well, then Edwards might have to tinker with the way his side go about trying to secure their three points.

He did reveal he could let his players off the leash that bit more against the mid-table Eagles, as he continued: “I think at home we’ll have to be slightly different against the top four, five, six clubs and then compared to everyone else, we might be able to attack the game a little bit more, be a little bit more aggressive, depending on the personnel we have available to us. So we’ll always try to pick a team and have a plan that suits the players.

“I don’t expect them (Palace) to change too much, so if we can play fast and quick football, play to our strengths then it can cause any team problems and we’ve see that at the Kenny this season.

"We’ve had a really good week this week and worked on how we think we can hurt them, exploit the spaces they will leave as well. Every team’s going to give you some kind of space, so we’ve worked hard and the players have been really receptive as well.

"We’re going with a good plan and we’re confident as well, but in good form.

"I’ve said this about every game that we’ve played though, I go into it expecting to win the game.

"We’ve really emphasised that you can’t guarantee anything, but the running, the basics, the fight, the attitude, we can guarantee all of that stuff.

"With Kenilworth Road and the noise and the crowd on our side, it can play into our hands. It can make it more difficult for the opposition, so we want to take advantage of that, and it’s certainly a game we’ve got to try and win.

Palace have had injury problems of their own, but were able to welcome back both England international Eze, who once destroyed Luton when at QPR back in 2019, plus talented winger Olise as well for their 3-2 defeat at home to Everton recently.

Defensively they have impressed this year, Marc Guehi called up to the England squad, where he was joined by goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, as the former West Bromwich Albion stopper has kept five clean sheets so far in the league, the joint best with Newcastle’s Nick Pope.

The return of the Eagles’ attacking duo at just the right time was of no concern to Edwards though, who added: “It’s fine, let’s play their strongest team. Every team in this league has got really good players, really good individuals, so we’ll plan and prepare for their best.

“They’ve got good players, good full international defenders at the back, got a really organised way of playing.

"It’s something I’m sure Roy (Hodgson) will base a lot of his work on, an organisation first and foremost to fall back on if you need to.

"They’re a difficult team to score against as well, this is a team who’ve gone away and won at Old Trafford, won at Burnley, won at Sheffield United already this season, so it’s a difficult one for us.”