Kenilworth Road is the location for Saturday's lunchtime Premier League kickoff, as Luton Town and Chelsea take to the turf for the final time in 2023.
Rob Edwards's men marched to an engrossing 3-2 win over Sheffield United on Boxing Day, just over 24 hours before the Blues left it late to defeat Crystal Palace 2-1.
Match preview
© Reuters
Becoming the first-ever Premier League team to benefit from two own goals scored in the 75th minute or later, Luton's current crop of players wrote their names into Hatters history at Bramall Lane, as they made it back-to-back wins in the competition for the first time ever.
Oli McBurnie and Anel Ahmedhodzic had turned the basement battle on its head following Alfie Doughty's first-half opener, but a calamitous collapse saw Jack Robinson's deft header nestle into his own net, four minutes before Anis Ben Slimane deflected the ball beyond a stranded Wes Foderingham.
Two crosses from Carlton Morris instigated Sheffield United's own-goal disasterclass, but while Rob Edwards's team rightly celebrated with their delirious away supporters, the five-goal spectacular was overshadowed by allegations of a racist comment being directed at the former from the crowd.
While police investigate the incident, Morris and Luton now endeavour to end 2023 with an unforeseen third Premier League win on the bounce, having also triumphed against Newcastle United on December 23 to strengthen their bid for survival, although they remain in the relegation zone for the time being.
However, Luton are within touching distance of Everton, Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest with a game in hand, and victory on Saturday would see the hosts make it three top-flight successes on the bounce for the first time since December 1991, where their third triumph came against none other than Chelsea.
© Reuters
The historical omens weigh heavily in Luton's favour this weekend, as that victory over the Blues 32 years ago was their final game of the calendar year, prior to which they had also brought 1989 and 1990 to a close with meetings against their West London counterparts.
In contrast, Mauricio Pochettino's charges ought to dismiss the record books as they look to keep the momentum going from Wednesday's unconvincing success over Palace, where an 89th-minute Noni Madueke penalty proved decisive following earlier strikes from Mykhaylo Mudryk and Michael Olise.
Having not been made to pay for their worrying wastefulness, Chelsea sneaked back into the top half of the table in 10th place, although they are only clear of recent conquerors Wolverhampton Wanderers and Bournemouth - who have played a game fewer - on goal difference.
Much has been made of Chelsea's Stamford Bridge struggles in 2023, but the beating of the Eagles marked the Blues' fourth successive home win across all tournaments, while they have suffered an identical losing streak on the road since destroying Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 before the November international break.
Should the Blues be condemned to an embarrassing fifth straight defeat on the road at Kenilworth Road, it would also mark the first time since 2011 that they have lost their final game of the calendar year, but August's home clash with Luton saw Pochettino's men ease to a convincing 3-0 triumph.
Team News
© Reuters
Luton travelled home from Bramall Lane without any fresh injury or suspension concerns to factor in for the visit of Chelsea, where Jordan Clark should be able to bolster the ranks if his illness settles down in the coming hours.
Issa Kabore has also shaken off a muscular injury, but Reece Burke (thigh), Dan Potts (thigh) and Marvelous Nakamba (knee) all stand to miss the hosts' final game of 2023, while captain Tom Lockyer remains on the long road to recovery from his distressing cardiac arrest.
Having seen two of his deliveries deflected into the Sheffield United net on Boxing Day, Morris could hardly have done more to earn a recall to the Hatters' XI; either Elijah Adebayo or Jacob Brown could be forced to step aside.
As for Chelsea, both Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer are eligible for selection again after serving their one-game suspensions against Palace, where Christopher Nkunku made his first Premier League start and Romeo Lavia earned his Blues baptism off the bench.
Pochettino revealed after the game that he was worried about knocks for Lavia and Mykhaylo Mudryk, though, and the visitors' midfield ranks could therefore be decimated further if Enzo Fernandez's hernia does not settle down in time for the trip to Luton.
Trevoh Chalobah (thigh), Carney Chukwuemeka (knee), Ben Chilwell (hamstring), Wesley Fofana (knee), Reece James (thigh), Marc Cucurella (ankle) and Robert Sanchez (knee) make up Chelsea's definite absentees for Saturday's showdown, where Pochettino may also be tempted to sacrifice Nicolas Jackson given the hectic schedule and another profligate performance on Wednesday.
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Kaminski; Osho, Mengi, Bell; Doughty, Barkley, Lokonga, Giles; Townsend, Morris; Adebayo
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Silva, Colwill; Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Sterling; Nkunku
We say: Luton Town 1-2 Chelsea
Not one team has travelled to Luton Town's turf in the 2023-24 Premier League season and blown Edwards's team to smithereens, and even the most optimistic Chelsea fan should not expect their inconsistent troupe to do so on Saturday, especially when their horrendous away record is taken into account.
The Hatters will also benefit from an extra day's rest and should make one of their forward forays count, but a fresh-legged Sterling and Palmer can create chaos for the Luton backline, which may not be able to prevent Pochettino's side from ending their hoodoo on their travels.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Knapton
