Luton Town FC vs Birmingham City (21st Aug 2021)

Report | Luton Town v Birmingham City

The Hatters suffered a second league defeat of the season at Kenilworth Road this afternoon as Birmingham City took all three points back to the Midlands with a comprehensive 5-0 win.

Manager Nathan Jones made two changes from the team that beat Barnsley 1-0 in midweek, Allan Campbell coming into midfield in place of the injured Henri Lansbury, whilst Harry Cornick partnered Elijah Adebayo up-top, in place of Cameron Jerome who was among the substitutes.

Fred Onyedinma was back in the matchday squad after being forced off against West Brom, whilst there was a first home league start for Peter Kioso in defence.

Birmingham started on the front foot, Marc Roberts cross from the left finding centre-half partner Kristian Pederen's head in the opening two minutes, but it flew safely past Simon Sluga's far post.

Roberts was first to be booked for a foul on Cornick, with Bree's free-kick causing concern in the Birmingham six-yard box, but neither Elijah Adebayo or Tom Lockyer could take advantage as Matija Sarkic struggled to clear in the fifth minute.

The visitors had the lead a minute later when Roberts met Jeremie Bela's near-post corner with a firm header that gave Sluga no chance.

Town spurned a chance to level on 15 minutes, when Lockyer brought the ball out of defence and set Cornick free, but his floating cross from the right was fractionally too high for Admiral Muskwe coming in at the far post.

Midway through the half Bell tried his luck from 35 yards, his drive skidding off the greasy surface and making it difficult for Sarkic to hold on to, but Lockyer's attempt to force home the rebound was too high.

It was 2-0 in the 26th minute when Bell's header clear from a Bela cross dropped at Tahith Chong's feet. The Manchester United loanee picked out an unmarked Scott Hogan to head past Sluga once more.

Jones made an immediate switch, taking off Peter Kioso and reverting to a flat back four, with Glen Rea coming in to anchor the midfield.

Adebayo was soon causing problems down the left, bursting past Roberts and cutting a low cross back but neither Cornick or Muskwe could get a finish on.

Rea was soon into ref John Busby's notepad for a trip on Ryan Woods, but he was putting himself about and triggering a flurry of attacks, without the Hatters creating and real chances of note.

It was Sluga who was called into action again three minutes into time added on to push a shot from Chong away, before Pedersen fired into the side-netting as the Town struggled to clear another set piece just as Busby prepared to blow the half-time whistle.

Jones made a second change at the break, taking off Campbell and replacing him with Fred Onyedinma. Within two minutes, however, things had gone from bad to worse as a Bree corner from the left was cleared at the near post, Mpanzu miscontrolled and Chong carried the ball forward at pace.

The Blues' wideman beat Bell on halfway and was clean through on Sluga as Mpanzu slid in to block his shot with a perfectly timed challenge, only for the ball to roll straight into Hogan's path, and the City forward rolled it into an empty net.

Onyedinma went close with an overhead-kick in the 57th minute, after Cornick dug out a cross from by the right corner flag and Adebayo nodded back across goal.

It was Cornick's last involvement, Jones introducing Cameron Jerome in his place, but it was Chong who was soon warming Sluga's palms again at the other end, with a low shot from outside the box just before the hour.

Bree got in on the right side of the City area in the 67th minute, Adebayo finding the full-back's run but his cross-shot was turned behind at the near post by a combination of Muskwe and Roberts, referee Busby deeming the Town man had the last touch.

Bree asked a question again in the 74th minute, whipping in a free-kick after Rea had been fouled by Chuks Aneke out on the left, but unfortunately Adebayo couldn't get a touch as the ball travelled through the penalty area.

With just under a quarter of an hour to go, Sluga released Onyedinma with a long kick, and after forcing Harlee Dean into an error, the winger fashioned a shooting opportunity, but once again his left-footed effort flashed across the face of goal.

Aneke went close to adding to the visitors' advantage, only for Sluga to stand strong, but it wasn't long before substitute Gary Gardner did, curling into the top corner with 20-yard shot from the angle of the area with five minutes to go.

It was five in the 88th minute when Aneke scrambled one in from close range to complete a miserable afternoon for the Hatters.

Goals:

City - Roberts 6, Hogan 26, 47, Gardner 85, Aneke 88

Att: 10,014 (1,006 away)

Nathan Jones | "We were a mile off"

Honest review from the manager after Birmingham defeat...

Manager Nathan Jones admitted his side simply weren’t at the races as they were comfortably beaten by Birmingham City at Kenilworth Road.

After going in two goals down at the break, the Blues strengthened their position in the second period to win by five, a scoreline that left the gaffer ‘a little bit embarrassed’.

“It is not often we put in performances like that and today we were a mile off. Both boxes, aggression, work rate, it wasn’t there today. I don’t know why, we’ve had an extra day of rest than Birmingham have and I just felt we were lacking the real important bits. They scored with their first set-play and we had a chance before that to have scored.

“We put in as many good set-plays as they did but they got their heads on it. Third goal absolutely kills us because we started well. Give it away on the edge of their box, they break through and score. A little bit embarrassed by the score line but I’m very rarely embarrassed when I come in front of the cameras because this is a good group, and we have to make sure we learn from this and bounce back.”

The manager continued by saying: “We are missing players, another two centre-halves, Lansbury today as well. Hylton, Berry, Dan Potts, all people you regard as being strong men for us. We are lacking a bit of that and we are looking forward to getting them back.

“We’ve had two excellent performances and we have had two really poor performances. Really disappointed today, we have to make sure we put it behind us because in seven days’ time we have another game.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpN6rmp9DqM – Nathan Jones post-match interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY7z5EpmKwQ – Kal Naismith post-match interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmR7bGqFly0 – match highlights

Woeful Luton are thrashed 5-0 by Birmingham

Championship: Luton Town 0 Birmingham City 5

An absolutely inept defensive performance from Luton saw the Hatters suffer a downright embarrassing hammering at the hands of Birmingham City this afternoon.

After a midweek triumph at Barnsley in which the efforts of Town's back-line were the highlight of the evening, with many singing their praises, this was to prove the exact opposite, the hosts undone with ease time and time again, City's aerial domination particularly painful to witness.

There were to be no repeat of Luton's valiant fightback at West Bromwich Albion the previous weekend too, when the Hatters almost pegged their opponents back from 3-0 behind, Birmingham going on to run riot with two more goals late on and puncture all the optimism that had been swirling around Kenilworth Road prior to kick off.

The Hatters made two changes from Tuesday night's 1-0 victory, Allan Campbell and Harry Cornick replacing Henri Lansbury and Cameron Jerome, the latter dropping to the bench against his former club, where he was joined by the fit-again Fred Onyedinma.

City made the better start, Kristian Pedersen getting up first, which was to become something of a theme, to glance narrowly wide of the target from Marc Roberts' dangerous cross.

Roberts was then booked for scything down Cornick on the edge of the box and from James Bree's whipped free kick, Matija Sarkic parried, the keeper then doing superbly to block Tom Lockyer's follow up.

For the second time in three games, Town were behind early though, and as at the Hawthorns, from a set-piece, Roberts leaping impressively to beat Elijah Adebayo and power his header past Simon Sluga despite a touch from the keeper.

Luton almost levelled when Lockyer led a charge out of defence, finding Cornick, whose cross was just too high for the unmarked Admiral Muskwe at the back post.

After a corner was cleared, Amari'i Bell, buoyed by his midweek winner, tried his luck from 35 yards, with Sarkic unable to hold and just getting there to divert the rebound against Lockyer and over.

Despite Town appearing to have the upper hand, they then conceded again on 27 minutes, when the hosts couldn't clear their lines and Tahith Chong sent over a cross that Scott Hogan directed cleverly past the despairing dive of Sluga.

Boss Nathan Jones reacted by taking off Peter Kioso for Glen Rea, the substitute moving into the holding role, and quickly booked for clipping Chong when in full flight.

Just prior to the break, Muskwe's touch let him down as he went to gather Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu's interception, before Manchester United loanee Chong went for goal with an angled drive that forced Sluga to repel, Naismith hacking the loose ball away.

Pedersen was off target in the last action of the half, as referee John Busby bore the bunt of the crowd's frustrations given the number of erratic decisions he had been making.

Jones brought on Onyedinma at the break for Campbell, but any hopes of a comeback went up in smoke just two minutes into the second period, the goal coming from a home corner.

Bree's poor delivery was headed out to Mpanzu whose poor tough was seized upon by the influential Chong, easily head and shoulders above any other player on the pitch, the Red Devil racing past Bell to bear down on Sluga.

Although Mpanzu somehow managed to keep pace with him and execute a superb full stretch last-ditch tackle, the ball ran fortunately through to the unmarked Hogan who had the simplest job of taping into the empty net.

It could have got worse Ivan Sunjic shanking wide from the edge of the box, but Luton did attempt an unlikely comeback, Onyedinma's acrobatic overhead flying wide.

Jones brought on ex-Blue striker Jerome, but Chong carried on dictating proceedings, his low attempt gathered by Sluga.

Bree's cut back was turned wide by Muskwe, while Onyedinma's cross-shot flashed across goal, while at the other end, Chuks Aneke's downward header bounced narrowly wide.

Jerome might have pulled one back, unable to hit the target from yet another decent Bree free kick, before Sluga was down well to prevent Aneke putting an even greater gloss on the scoreline with eight to go.

He could do nothing to stop substitute Gary Gardner from doing just that on 85 minutes though, picking out the top corner with a strike of unerring quality.

With Luton's chins well and truly on the floor, they then conceded a farcical fifth when Jeremie Bela was left unmarked, his volley blocked on the line, where a prostrate Aneke managed to turn it over the line.

It meant the Hatters were condemned to a heaviest home reverse since the 5-0 loss against Reading on July 4, 2020, although fortunately for the supporters, on that occasion, hey hadn't been allowed to watch that equally appalling effort.

Hatters: Simon Sluga, Peter Kioso (Glen Rea 27), Tom Lockyer, Kal Naismith, James Bree, Amari'i Bell, Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu, Allan Campbell (Fred Onyedinma 46), Admiral Muskwe, Harry Cornick (Cameron Jerome 57), Elijah Adebayo.

Subs not used: Harry Isted, Carlos Mendes Gomes, Elliot Lee, Gabe Osho.

Blues: Matiaj Sarkic, Maxime Colin, Kristian Pedersen, Marc Roberts, Ryan Woods, Tahith Chong (Ivan Sanchez 70), Scott Hogan (Chuks Aneke 61), Lukas Jutkiewicz (Gary Gardner 81), Jeremie Bela, Harlee Dean ©, Ivan Sunjic.

Subs not used: George Friend, Jonathan Leko, Juan Castillo, Connal Trueman.

Bookings: Roberts 4, Rea 34.

Referee: John Busby.

Attendance: 10,014 (1,006 Blues)

Hatters boss left 'embarrassed' by Luton's humbling home defeat by the Blues

Manager reaction after Town are thrashed 5-0

Luton boss Nathan Jones declared he was left ‘embarrassed’ by the manner of Town’s capitulation at the hands of Birmingham City this afternoon, as they were thrashed 5-0.

The Hatters had gone into the game looking to build on their fine 1-0 win at Barnsley in midweek, but fell behind on just seven minutes, Marc Roberts heading home from a corner.

Scott Hogan then made it 2-0 just after the midway point, before two minutes into the second period, he tapped into an empty net after the impressive Manchester United loanee Tahith Chong broke away from a home corner.

Late goals from substitutes Gary Gardner and Chuks Aneke saw the Blues add a gloss to proceedings, as Jones said: “I’m really disappointed, a little bit embarrassed by the scoreline and the level of performance but I don’t often get that from this group in terms of being embarrassed.

“I’m always proud of them, they give me everything, today we shot ourselves in the foot from early on.

“We conceded from a set-play which we did last weekend as well, it sets you back.

"Ironically we started the game so well on Tuesday, we wanted to continue that, but we didn't do the basics well enough today and that's what caused us problems.

“As I said, I’m embarrassed a little bit by the scoreline, but we have to learn from that and go again."

With the first two Birmingham goals coming from set-pieces, it meant at Town had shipped four in the last three matches from such a scenario, something Jones knows is an increasing concern.

He added: “It will be if we continue like that but we've got a lot of people out that we regard as our best headers.

“We’ve got two six foot two, three, four, five foot centre halves out (Sonny Bradley and Reece Burke), Dan Potts who's arguably our best header is out, so we’ve got a lot of people who do the basics well out.

“At the moment we’ve got people recovering, so we’re a bit makeshift at times.

“We’ve got Peter (Kioso) in the back three who’s a right back, and inexperienced, but we’ve had to do that which is categorically different to them with Harlee Dean with Roberts and (Kristian) Pedersen that must have 900 Championship games between them.

“So we’re a little bit light in that way, we have to get everyone back, but we have to be better in doing the basics than that.”