Are the chickens coming home to roost? Luton Town made it over 140 days without a competitive victory after a disappointing afternoon at Preston. Lots of shots, not many on target, and a gift of a goal conceded when Keane was given the freedom of the box.
A promising debut from McGuinness. And a sighting on the bench of the lesser-spotted Mads, and big Reece Burke. But the fact the first sub today was Liam Walsh in a match we needed a game-changer could be a sign of the club’s ambition this season.
A week to go in the transfer market and we will see who else comes in, and who departs.
The midfield looks very light indeed – we haven’t come close to replacing the Barkley / Lokonga axis. And there doesn’t seem to be a plan b, c, d or e. Which makes defending against Luton – at the moment – pretty easy.
Four defeats at the start last season. And in our promotion campaign, we didn’t win until game 5 – Swansea away.
Thirteen corners at Preston. Without converting any into a goal. That’s a big difference from last season where those fans who travelled to Everton will remember what a threat from set pieces we were.
Two matches against QPR now to try and find some energy, some form, some belief, and a system that works given the players available. Over to you Rob.
#COYH
Town: Shea; Ogbene (sub Walsh 67), Doughty, Mengi, McGuinness, Bell; Clark (sib Woodrow 78), Baptiste (sub Nelson 85), Chong (sub Walters 67); Morris (sub Taylor 78), Adebayo.
Subs: Horlick, Andersen, Burke, Mpanzu.