Luton Town – Edwards Faces Selection Dilemma For Gillingham Carabao Cup Tie
Two games into the 2023/2024 season and the Hatters are looking for their first win of the season.
This Tuesday, Luton Town take a break from the Premier League to take on Gillingham in the second round of the Carabao Cup.
The fixture, for me, will prove to be interesting as far as the starting XI selection goes.
In previous seasons, I’ve got the impression that the Carabao Cup wasn’t deemed to be that important with Nathan Jones focusing on getting Luton Town promoted to the cash-laden Premier League.
In 2021/2022, the Hatters crashed out of the competition at the hands of Stevenage, losing in a penalty shoot-out, while in 2022/2023 our exit was at the hands of Newport County, losing 3-2 at Kenilworth Road, both defeats coming in our first game of the competition.
But should more focus be put on the Carabao Cup this season?
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Although the Premier League, and staying in it, is our main aim this season, a decent cup run boosts confidence.
After losing our opening two games in the Premier League, against Brighton (a) and Chelsea (a), I’m of the belief we need to get a win ASAP to get our season on track and a win against Gillingham could boost our confidence as we prepare to face West Ham United, on Friday evening.
With that in mind, I’m hoping that Rob Edwards selects a strong side, possibly his strongest available XI, although there may be a case for including some of those who are in need of game time, namely Allan Campbell, Alfie Doughty etc.
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West Ham sign Ajax striker Mohammed Kudus in time for Kenilworth Road trip
Luton’s Premier League rivals West Ham United have signed Ajax striker Mohammed Kudus in time for their trip to Kenilworth Road on Friday night.
The 23-year-old Ghanaian international has penned a five year contract at the London Stadium, as the Hammers shelled out a reported £38m to win the race for his signature against fierce competition from some of Europe’s leading clubs.
Kudus joined Danish club Nordsjælland as a 17-year-old back in 2018 and then moved to Ajax in July 2020 to join up with head coach Erik ten Hag, now in charge of Manchester United.
Last season, he scored 19 goals in all competitions with seven assists too, including efforts against Liverpool, Napoli and Rangers in the Champions League.
He has also won 24 caps for his country, scoring seven goals, including twice in the 3-2 World Cup Finals group stage 3-2 victory over South Korea last year.
Kudos now joins Edson Álvarez, Dinos Mavropanos and James Ward-Prowse in bolstering the Hammers squad and could get his first run-out when the unbeaten Irons, who topped the league on Saturday, head to Luton this week.
Manager David Moyes told the club’s official website: “I’m delighted we’ve been able to bring Mohammed to West Ham United.
“He’s a terrific young talent, who has already shone at the very highest level for Ajax in the Champions League and made well over 150 senior appearances at the age of 23 – so it was no surprise to see so many top clubs chasing his signature this summer.
“The fact we’ve been able to attract a player of his undoubted quality to London Stadium shows the pull West Ham have now – the board and Tim deserve huge credit for getting this one over the line.”
Kudus himself added: “I’ve been dreaming to play in a league like this since I was a kid.
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