The Black Cats have a clear advantage when it comes to the head-to-head, having recorded 21 wins from 40 encounters, while the Hatters have prevailed only 11 times.
Follow Us
Sunderland will be bidding to move one step closer to securing promotion to the Premier League when they travel to Kenilworth road on Tuesday night to take on Luton Town in the second leg of their EFL championship semi-final playoff tie. The Black Cats came from behind to secure a 2-1 win in the first leg at Stadium of Light on Saturday. Luton went ahead through Elijah Adebayo’s 11th minute effort before Amad Diallo leveled the score with a stunning freekick in the 39th-minute, and Trai Hume headed home the winner from Jack Clarke’s cross to send the home crowd into delirium.
Second leg in our sights 👊#SAFC | #TilTheEnd pic.twitter.com/HTJwkEJfFG
— Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) May 14, 2023
Luton secured a third-place finish in the English second tier courtesy of taking 80 points from 46 games, eleven points adrift of the top two (automatic qualification spots). The Hatters ended their league-campaign with a 14-game unbeaten streak, that included eight victories. Therefore, Luto head coach Rob Edwards would be optimistic about his side’s chances of turning things around in the second leg in front of their own supporters. Moreover, Luton have a solid record at Kenilworth this term, having lost only four of their 23 home-matches in the second tier, while recording five wins from their last six, the one aberration being a goalless draw with Hull City last Monday. Since the turn of the year, only West Bromwich Albion and Championship-winners Burnley have got the better of Luton at Kenilworth Road and they have kept six clean sheets from their last ten games in front of their own supporters.
Sunderland, on the other hand, are aiming to return to the top tier of English football for the first time since 2016-17. The crucial home-leg win against Luton extended the Black Cats’s unbeaten run to ten games, while winning five matches in the process. The rocker Men squeezed through to the top six on the final match day courtesy of thrashing Preston North End 3-0 last Monday. Meanwhile, the Rocker Men have recorded four wins and one draw from their last five games on the road, scoring seven goals and keeping four clean sheets along the way.
Prior to Saturday’s game, these two sides had played out four consecutive 1-1 draws, also doing so in the 2018-19 League One season. The rapid rise of both clubs since those days in the third tier is admirable, but only one can vie for Premier League football against Coventry or Middlesbrough at Wembley on May 27. Meanwhile, the Black Cats have a clear advantage when it comes to the head-to-head, having recorded 21 wins from 40 encounters, while the Hatters have prevailed only 11 times, and their last triumph came way back in 2007 in the EFL Cup.
| Key Details | Stats |
| Total matches | 40 |
| Sunderland won | 21 |
| Luton Town won | 11 |
| Draws | 8 |
| Total Sunderland goals | 73 |
| Total Luton Town goals | 59 |
| Biggest Sunderland win | 5-0 (2007) |
| Biggest Luton Town win | 8-2 (1955) |
| Last 5 match-results | Score |
| Sunderland beat Luton | 2-1 |
| Sunderland draw Luton | 1-1 |
| Luton draw Sunderland | 1-1 |
| Sunderland draw Luton | 1-1 |
| Luton draw Sunderland | 1-1 |
More football news:
Champions League: How can Manchester City get past Real Madrid in second leg of semi-final?
