Manchester City vs Luton: Preview, Prediction & Betting Tips

Date: 13/04/24

Kick-off time: 15:00

Venue: Etihad Stadium
Last year’s champions are looking to retain their crown for a fourth straight season, but are currently not in control of their destiny. City are third thanks to a 0-0 draw with Arsenal, but are just one point behind the Gunners at the top and Liverpool in second. Mikel Arteta’s side lead the way with 71 points, top on goal difference following Liverpool’s draw to Man United at the weekend. With the quality each team is producing in this title race, every game feels like a must win. Any dropped points could severely weaken their chances.

Luton, in contrast, are fighting to extend their one-year stay in the Premier League, and last week’s victory at the death against Bournemouth has kept their hopes well alive. They are still in the relegation zone, but only remain in there because of their inferior goal difference to Nottingham Forest. With six games remaining, they will still have to pick up some big points, but teams above them are certainly nervously looking over their shoulders.

However, any points away at Man City seems an unrealistic possibility. The hosts have yet to lose at home in the league, and have scored 38 goals. The Hatters’ have picked up only 10 points on the road, with just two wins. In their last two games, City have scored four in each and will be confident in putting a few past Thomas Kaminski in the visiting net. Erling Haaland recently scored his 19th goal of the campaign and will come up against a defence who has not kept a clean sheet in 12.

The two sides have met just twice this century, both coming this season in the Premier League and FA Cup. Before this, they had not taken each other on since 1999, when City were in the second division. The reverse fixture earlier this season was a narrow 2-1 victory for the visitors at Kenilworth Road, as second half goals from Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish cancelled out Elijah Adebayo’s first half opener. The cup game in February was much more comfortable for Pep Guardiola’s side, with them winning 6-2 away. They were helped by an incredible five goals from Erling Haaland, before Mateo Kovacic added a sixth.

Man City

Nathan Ake is likely to miss this game, but Kyle Walker could have a chance to return from a thigh injury. Pep Guardiola has no new injury concerns otherwise.

Luton

Luton have a number of long-term absentees, but Mads Andersen and Albert Sambi Lokonga could return before the end of the month. The club are hopeful that Elijah Adebayo and Chiedozie Ogbene make a comeback sometime this season

Man City
In their last five games, Man City have won three and drawn two. Their most recent was a trip to Crystal Palace in which they picked up a huge three points in the title race. In the 4-2 victory, they went behind very early to a Jean-Philippe Mateta strike, but Kevin De Bruyne answered with a stunning strike. De Bruyne scored his second to make it three after Rico Lewis put City ahead, and Erling Haaland scored the fourth. Palace scored a late consolation through Odsonne Edouard.

This followed a dominant 4-1 victory at home to fourth place Aston Villa. The visitors were missing Ollie Watkins, but City and in particular Phil Foden tormented their defence. The Englishman scored a hat-trick after Rodri’s opener was cancelled out by Jhon Duran. It was a good response to being held to a 0-0 draw at home to fellow title challengers Arsenal, with the shared points putting Liverpool in the driving seat for the trophy. They dominated possession with 73% possession, with 12 attempts, though had just one on target. With 700 passes, they out passed their opponents by over 400, but they disappointingly could not find a breakthrough.

Another chance at a trophy is still alive as they advanced to the semi-finals of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win against Newcastle. It was a straightforward tie for the hosts, with the Magpies’ threat non-existent. Bernardo Silva’s first half brace was enough to progress. Their first game in this run was a 1-1 draw at Liverpool in what was a highly contested match. They will have been frustrated to not return home with all three points given they had taken the lad through John Stones. Liverpool managed to get back on level terms in the second half from the penalty spot, which was converted by Alexis Mac Allister. Ederson was the culprit as he recklessly took down striker Darwin Nunez in the box.

Luton
In their last five games, Luton have drawn two and lost three. It had been an extended winless streak for relegation battling Luton, but this was ended when they beat Bournemouth 2-1 in their most recent game. The visitors went ahead shortly after the restart through Marcus Tavernier, but Jordan Clark scored the leveller. Carlton Morris scored the winner in the 90th minute.

This run actually began with a stunning 4-3 defeat at the same opponents. They found themselves 3-0 up at half-time thanks to goals from Tahith Chong, Chiedozie Ogbene and Ross Barkley. Dominic Solanke gave the Cherries an immediate response after the break, before Illia Zabarnyi pulled back another. The comeback was almost complete as Antoine Semenyo bagged the equaliser. The historic turnaround concluded as Semenyo grabbed his brace with six minutes to go.

They were lucky to leave with a point against fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest as Luke Berry equalised in the 89th minute to cancel out Chris Wood’s earlier opener. This preceded a narrow 2-1 defeat at Tottenham, but they would have been disappointed not to have left with at least a point. They took an early lead through Chong but could not hold on as an Issa Kabore own goal and Heung-Min Son strike turned it around. A trip to Arsenal also ended in defeat as they fell 2-0. Both goals came in the first half as a Martin Odegaard strike and Daiki Hashioka own goal proved the difference.

Luton finally picked up a win, but they are unlikely to continue that momentum as they face an extremely difficult trip to the Etihad. The champions will dominate this game and will be confident in picking up a clean sheet – Manchester City 3-0 Luton

Manchester City vs Luton Town will not be available to watch on TV in the UK.