Luton Town will open the Championship season on Saturday with a home match against Birmingham City at Kenilworth Road with a kickoff at 5 pm.
The most loyal Luton Town fans would have been hard-pressed to predict their team finishing as high as sixth in the Championship last season. Under manager Nathan Jones, though, the club has made a remarkable journey.
After guiding the Hatters out of League Two, Jones did most of the work, taking them to the top division of English football for the first time since 1978. He then took over as manager at Stoke City.
However, he returned to Luton after an unsuccessful stint with the Potters. He enjoyed another good campaign in 2018/19 when they reached the brink of promotion to the Premier League before losing out narrowly on aggregate against Huddersfield Town.
Birmingham City only survived relegation to League One by goal difference last season, and it was perhaps no surprise that the club relieved Lee Bowyer of his managerial duties. However, he was dealing with incredibly difficult circumstances at St Andrew’s.
The second city-based side has finished between 17th and 20th in each of the last six seasons in the Championship, with many feeling their luck could be set to run out in the shape of relegation this season.
Luton Town vs. Birmingham City Head to Head
Both sides have six games against each other, with the hosts taking one win while the visitors with four wins. Here is a look at their previous encounters:
Home
- Luton Town 1-1 West Ham
- Peterborough 0-2 Luton Town
- Northampton 1-2 Luton
- NK Bravo 1-2 Luton
Away
- Birmingham City 2-2 Rayo Vallecano
- Cheltenham 1-0 Birmingham City
- Alvechurch FC 4-2 Birmingham City
- Burton Albion 1-2 Birmingham City
Luton Town Team News
Luton manager Nathan Jones has a full squad for Saturday’s game against Walsall, with goalkeeper James Shea the only injury concern. Left-back Alfie Doughty will have his chance to impress after being called into the team for the first time last weekend.
Birmingham City Team News
Birmingham manager Lee Clark is unlikely to change his starting XI for Saturday’s trip to Bedfordshire. The former Huddersfield Town boss was pleased with his side’s performance in last weekend’s 2-2 draw against La Liga outfit Rayo Vallecano, so he may elect to name an unchanged side.
Prediction and Odds
The hosts are unlikely to have many goalscoring opportunities on Saturday, but they should have enough to earn three points and get their season off to a winning start.
- Home Win
- Goals Under 2.5
- No Score: Away
