Sunderland hold a slim advantage as they travel to Luton Town for the second leg of their Championship playoff semi-final. The Black Cats have been solid on the road lately and have the quality to avoid defeat on Tuesday.
Luton Town will be disappointed to have lost the first leg 2-1 at the Stadium of Light. They failed to build on an early opener for Elijah Adebayo and were pegged back by the hosts.
That was the first defeat in 15 matches across all competitions for Luton Town, although much of the recent fixtures in that run have ended in draws. Robert Edwards’ men have been held three times in their last five matches while also keeping just one clean sheet in that run.
Having avoided a heavy defeat in the first leg, Luton Town will be confident of turning things around as they return to Kenilworth Road. They have lost just once in their last 11 home matches, although their most recent fixture in front of their fans ended in a 0-0 draw with Hull City.
Sunderland hold a slim advantage after coming from behind to claim that 2-1 win in the first leg. Amad Diallo continued his fine scoring form with the equaliser before the break while Trai Hume netted the winner midway through the second half.
That result means Sunderland are now unbeaten in their last 10 matches, although that run is evenly split into five wins and as many draws. A slight problem is an inability to maintain their discipline at the back having kept just one clean sheet in the last six fixtures in that run.
One impressive thing about Sunderland’s recent good form is that they have done some of their best work on their travels. Tony Mowbray’s men have claimed four wins and a draw from their last five away matches.
How the bookies view it
Luton Town have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 19/20 by bet365. A victory for Sunderland is valued at 16/5 by William Hill while a draw is set at odds of 5/2 by Betfred.
Head to head
Sunderland have a 13-9 advantage with six draws from 28 previous matches against Luton Town. The last four fixtures have ended in stalemates, including 1-1 draws in their two meetings during the regular season.
Players to watch
Carlton Morris failed to get on the score sheet for Luton Town in the first leg and will be hoping to get things right on Tuesday. Having grabbed 20 goals during the regular season, the striker is priced to find the net at 7/5 with BetVictor to find the net.
Amad Diallo showed his quality in the first leg by getting the equaliser and dragging Sunderland back unto the contest. The forward could be worth keeping an eye on to score anytime on Tuesday at 3/2 with BetVictor.
Anything else catch the eye?
Both teams have scored in their last five meetings and a similar outcome is priced at 10/11 with William Hill. Having produced over 2.5 goals in the first leg, a repeat could be considered at 6/5 with bet365 while over 3.5 goals is valued at 31/10 by BetVictor.
Luton Town and Sunderland have been level at the break in their last two meetings and can be set for another halftime draw at 11/10 with bet365.
This England Championship match between Luton Town and Sunderland will be played on May 16, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Luton Town vs Sunderland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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