‘New’ kick-off time for Derby County vs. Luton Town – prediction, team news, lineups
Both looking to land major blows in the relegation battle, Derby County and Luton Town will clash at Pride Park in the Championship on Good Friday.
The Rams secured a respectable draw at Portsmouth last time out in the second tier, whilst the struggling Hatters suffered a damaging defeat on home soil to Blackburn Rovers.
Match preview
After earning promotion from League One during the 2023-24 campaign following a second-placed finish in the third tier, Derby County are fighting hard to avoid an immediate return to that level, with the East Midlands side losing just one of their last seven matches in the Championship.
That being said, the Rams extended their winless streak in the division to a worrying three matches on Saturday afternoon, when they were twice pegged back by Rob Atkinson strikes for Portsmouth at Fratton Park, with the visitors and Pompey ultimately settling for a share of the honours.
A major positive from the contest on the South Coast, Derby striker Jerry Yates bagged his ninth Championship goal of the 2024-25 season, with the 28-year-old chasing his best-ever second-tier campaign (14 goals for Blackpool during the 2022-23 season).
After collecting just two points from their last three second-tier battles, the Rams have dropped down to 21st place in the Championship standings with only four games left to play, one point and one position above Cardiff City in the highest of the relegation spots.
Leaving a potential playoff push at Ewood Park in February, John Eustace has endured a mixed opening to his Pride Park reign as Derby head coach, with the 45-year-old winning four, drawing two and losing two of the first 10 matches as he attempts to avoid putting a maiden relegation on his CV.
Finishing just six points behind Nottingham Forest in the Premier League last season, Luton Town have suffered a historic fall from grace as they fight against the distinct possibility of back-to-back relegations – a fate that would leave them languishing in League One next term.
Netting a mere 37 goals across 42 second-tier matches to date, the Hatters possess the poorest attack in the Championship, and offensive issues reared their ugly head once again last weekend, when a second-half Yuki Ohashi goal was enough for Blackburn to claim maximum points at Kenilworth Road.
Defeat at the hands of the Lancashire outfit halted a five-game unbeaten streak in the second tier and leaves Luton sitting in 23rd spot in the Championship rankings, three points away from safety with only 12 points left to contest before all clubs will learn their end-of-season fate.
Unsurprisingly for a side facing the drop, the Hatters have been woeful on the road this season – earning just 12 points from 21 outings – but both of Luton’s recent victories have arrived away from Kenilworth Road, with Friday’s visitors winning at Cardiff and Hull City in March.
Parachuted in from promotion-chasing Wycombe Wanderers in January, Matt Bloomfield is assuming the role of firefighter in Bedfordshire amid a heated relegation dogfight, with the former Colchester United boss managing only three wins across his 16 matches in charge so far.
Derby County Championship form:
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Luton Town Championship form:
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Team News
Derby have a number of players who are ruled out for the remainder of the campaign, including Curtis Nelson (knee), David Ozoh (thigh) and Dajaune Brown (hamstring).
Ahead of facing the Championship’s poorest forward line, the Rams could be without the services of left-back Callum Elder, who picked up a knock at the beginning of April.
Eustace’s options at the back are reduced further by the absence of right-back Ryan Nyambe, with the 27-year-old suffering a hamstring strain recently.
Luton have been unable to call upon the leadership of club captain Tom Lockyer this term, meaning that Carlton Morris is in charge of setting the example from inside the squad.
Both major hits in the Premier League last season, Alfie Doughty (muscle) and Elijah Adebayo (knee) are currently occupying spots in the Hatters’ medical room.
Derby County possible starting lineup:
Zetterstrom; Langas, Phillips, Clarke; Wilson, Adams, Armstrong, Forsyth; Yates, Mendez-Laing, Harness
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Kaminski; Burke, Mengi, Bell; Jones, Walsh, Clark, Aasgaard, Alli; Chong, Morris
We say: Derby County 1-0 Luton Town
Rather blunt in front of net this season, Luton will be preparing for the worst at Pride Park, where Derby recently held Premier League-bound Burnley to a goalless draw.
Eustace’s side will view Good Friday’s clash as a massive opportunity to put some breathing space between themselves and the bottom three before a pair of tricky away matches to conclude April.
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