Sunderland host Luton Town in their Championship promotion playoff semi-final first leg on Saturday. There was nothing to separate both teams in their regular season meetings and another closely fought encounter could be on the cards here.
Sunderland only clinched the last playoff spot on the final day of the regular season after claiming a 3-0 victory at Preston North End. Goals from Amad Diallo, Alex Pritchard and Jack Clarke were enough to secure the win and edge out Blackburn Rovers on goal difference.
That result was a culmination of Sunderland’s good form in final weeks of the season as they are unbeaten in their last nine matches. However, they have only claimed four wins in that run with the remaining five ending in draws.
Sunderland have been plagued by a run of too many draws in recent weeks having been held four times in their last five home matches. A leaky defence could be the reason for this as Tony Mowbray’s men have failed to keep a single clean sheet in their last eight matches at the Stadium of Light.
Luton Town did not need to wait until the season finale to clinch their playoff spot, although they attempted to maintain their momentum for the postseason matches. They are unbeaten in their last 14 matches, claiming eight wins in that run.
There are a few similarities between Luton Town and Sunderland with Saturday’s visitors also plagued by too many draws lately. Robert Edwards’ men have been held three times in their last four matches and played out a 0-0 scoreline in their final fixture of the regular season.
Luton Town’s run of draws has been more prominent on their travels having been held six times in their last nine away matches. Like Sunderland, they have also been let down by some poor defending lately and are without a clean sheet in their last two matches on the road.
How the bookies view it
Sunderland have a slight edge among the bookies with a home win priced at 33/20 by Unibet. A victory for Luton Town is valued at 2/1 by bet365, who is also offering odds of 11/5 for a draw.
Head to head
Sunderland have a 12-9 advantage with six draws from 27 previous matches against Luton Town. However the last four meetings have ended in stalemates with both teams battling to 1-1 scorelines in all four fixtures.
Players to watch
Amad Diallo was the standout player for Sunderland during the regular season with 13 goals and will be keen to maintain that form in the playoffs. The attacker was on target in the last meeting with Luton Town in March and is priced at 3/1 by bet365.
Carlton Morris scored 20 goals for Luton Town in the regular season and will be the one to watch on Saturday. The striker also found the net in the last meeting at the Stadium of Light and is priced at 5/2 by bet365 to get on the score sheet once again.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been goals for both teams in their last four meetings and a similar outcome is priced at 10/11 by William Hill. Sunderland saw over 3.5 goals in their previous home fixture and a repeat is priced at 17/5 by BetVictor while over 2.5 is priced at 6/5 by Paddy Power.
Both teams were level at the break in their last meeting and Saturday’s clash can be tipped to follow a similar pattern at 21/20 with bet365.
This England Championship match between Sunderland and Luton Town will be played on May 13, 2023 and kick off at 17:30. Check below for our tipsters best Sunderland vs Luton Town prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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