The Championship this week kicks off on Friday night as Sheffield United travel to Kenilworth Road to face Luton. These are two sides that have had opposing starts to the season, as Luton sit in 19th but the Blades are at the top of the pile. Having said that, only 5 points separate the two teams.
Sheffield United look like they’re hitting form now. Whilst they’ve only picked up one point from their three away games, they have had tough fixtures at Watford, West Brom and Middlesbrough. They have arguably the best squad in the league and this started to show against Blackburn – where they racked up a massive xG total of over four. They’ve scored at least two goals in four of their last five matches and will want to continue that and have an impressive strike force capable of doing so.
Luton managed to pick up their first win of the season last week at the Swansea.com stadium. However, they were not made to work hard for their two goals because the Swans were very poor. Before that, they were poor at Bristol City and Preston won here in the last game here. Their only other league game at Kenilworth Road was a 0-0 draw against a very average Birmingham side. No goals and only one point in their first two home games will be a slight cause for concern for Nathan Jones, given Luton’s incredible record last season – five league losses in 25 games.
Luton Town v Sheffield United Bet Builder Tips
Sheffield United to Win
Sheffield United have started the season much more brightly than Luton and have looked much more comfortable, particularly in recent weeks. Whilst their away form has been poor to now, they will be looking to change that, and on the back of a strong performance last week, I think they will do so. They were unlucky not to win at Middlesbrough having thrown away the lead twice but were poor at Watford. However, Watford looked good that game and it was the first game of the season so they should be given some slack. Their home form has been very impressive with three wins from three and I believe they’ll convert that into points on the road on Friday evening.
Luton’s home form was very strong last season but they are yet to score so far. In fact, they’ve been poor in all five games both home and away and were solid if not spectacular in winning last week. They have been hampered with injuries to Cornick, Ruddock-Mpanzu, Doughty and Onyedinma and their signings have been underwhelming. They’ve managed to score three goals in their five games, two of which were from individual errors from Swansea and I doubt that Sheffield United will afford them similar luxuries in this game.
Last year, Sheffield United managed a point at Kenilworth Road but this was under Jokanovic when they seriously underachieved. At Bramall Lane, the Blades were extremely comfortable in a 2-0 win where they maybe should have scored more with their 25 shots.
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Prediction: Sheffield United to Win
Over 2.5 Goals
Sheffield United have started to find more fluency and efficiency going forward in the last few weeks. In three of their last four games, they have managed to find over 2 xG and in all four of those games they have found the net at least twice. Paul Heckingbottom is using his squad more efficiently now and has had plenty of time having had a good run at the end of last season. The players seem to be buying into his philosophy and the goals are flowing. However, they are maybe not as strong as they could be at the back, having conceded two at Middlesbrough as well as conceding to ten-man Sunderland. Each of their last three games have seen over 2.5 goals. They also have loanees Tommy Doyle and James McAtee who will want to impress off the bench if they do not start.
In the two Luton home games so far, there has only been one goal – which fell to Preston. However, there is evidence based on the underlying data that they have been unfortunate not to score, racking up 1.35 xG against Birmingham and 1.41 xG against Preston. They also afford away teams plenty of chances and have averaged over 1 xG against per game – against teams far worse than Sheffield United. On the back of their 2-0 win on the road, they will be buoyed up and I fancy them to be able to score even if they are on the losing side.
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Prediction: Over 2.5 Goals
Oli McBurnie to have 3+ Shots
Oli McBurnie will be hoping that this season he finally will be able to match his season at Swansea in 2018/19 where he scored 22 goals in just 38 full 90 minutes. Following a big money move to Sheffield United, he has been underwhelming and has only managed 7 goals, 6 of which were in his first season. However, he has been given a limited number of opportunities because of injuries and off the field incidents. This season he has shown flashes of what he is truly capable of.
He came off the bench against Middlesbrough and did not have much of an impact in his ten minutes on the pitch. However, against Sunderland two games ago, he was on the pitch for 17 minutes and managed 2 shots on target, earning him a start against Blackburn. Whilst he didn’t score, he managed to rack up a massive 8 shots. In previous seasons, he has managed an average of over two shots per 90 minutes year on year, even in the Premier League. Last season, he managed five shots in just 72 minutes against Luton and I feel he will be given similar opportunities again on Friday night.
Despite Swansea being very poor last week, Joel Piroe, who plays in a similar type of role to McBurnie, even if slightly deeper, managed five shots. Bristol City’s two starting strikers – Nahki Wells and Tommy Conway managed five shots between them the week before. Given the strength of Sheffield United, I fancy them to be able to give McBurnie enough chances to pull the trigger three or more times.
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Prediction: Oli McBurnie to have 3+ Shots
Over 3.5 Luton Corners
Luton rank amongst the highest in the league for corner stats this season, seeing an average of 12.6 corners per game so far, and all of their games seeing 11 or more. They have averaged 6.2 corners per game and had 17 in just two games at home. In four of their five games, this line has landed, only failing at Burnley, where they scored very early.
Sheffield United have averaged 4.40 corners against per game this season but have managed to give away five in both of their opening two away games so far. As with Luton, this line has landed in four of the five opening matches, even when they have dominated at home. I expect both teams to go for it on Friday evening and I think a high corner count could be on the cards.
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Prediction: Over 3.5 Luton Corners
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How to watch Luton Town v Sheffield United in the Championship
📅 When is Luton Town v Sheffield United? / Friday, 26th August 2022, 20:00
🏟 Where is Luton Town v Sheffield United? / Kenilworth Road (Luton)
📺 What TV channel is Luton Town v Sheffield United? / Sky Sports Main Event
