Luton Town FC vs Cardiff City (8th Feb 2020)

LUTON TOWN 0-1 CARDIFF CITY

Lee Tomlin's second half goal enough to give Cardiff victory

The Hatters suffered a 1-0 defeat to Cardiff City in the Sky Bet Championship at Kenilworth Road this afternoon.

Lee Tomlin scored the game’s only goal in the 73rd minute as Town were left to rue missed chances after falling to a second successive defeat.

Graeme Jones made two changes to the starting line-up following last weekend’s 2-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion, with Izzy Brown back in the 11 for the first time since defeat to Brentford in November.

Cameron Carter-Vickers was making his first start for the Hatters following his January loan move to the club from Tottenham Hotspur, with Kazenga LuaLua and Donervon Daniels beginning on the bench.

The opening exchanges were lively and full of opportunities, which mainly went the Hatters’ way.

Brown was at the forefront of Town’s attacks – winning two free-kicks for himself – but he failed to beat the wall on either occasion.

Ryan Tunnicliffe broke forward into the box minutes later but his attempted pull back to Harry Cornick in the middle was just behind him and Cardiff managed to clear.

Cornick had another chance in the 19th minute when Brown’s interception fell to him 25 yards from goal. He drove forward at pace and fired across goal, but his effort went wide of the post.

Just before half-time from a Cardiff corner, Town cleared and broke forward at speed with Brown. The midfielder progressed forward and fired goalwards, but Marlon Pack produced a vital headed clearance away.

Just before the hour mark, Simon Sluga was alert to save Joe Bennett’s effort directly from a corner which swung in from the right-hand-side.

The Croatia international was called into action again when Matty Pearson misjudged his header and allowed Paterson through on goal, but Sluga stood tall to block his chipped effort.

His efforts however, weren’t enough to keep out Tomlin, who scored the winner with 17 minutes to play with a curling effort from the edge of the box.

Straight from the restart, Dan Potts produced a fantastic ball into the box but Collins couldn't direct his diving header on target.

Substitute George Moncur had a drive from outside of the box in added time which Smithies knocked into the path of Collins, but the striker couldn’t make contact with the ball and Cardiff managed to clear.

The Hatters are now nine points from safety and are back in action at Kenilworth Road on Wednesday night when they welcome Sheffield Wednesday.

TOWN: Sluga, Bree, Carter-Vickers, Pearson, Potts, Tunnicliffe (LuaLua 78), Mpanzu, Rea (Moncur 78), Cornick, Brown (Berry 63), Collins (C) Subs not used: Shea, McManaman, Shinnie, Daniels.

CARDIFF: Smithies, Richards, Morrison (C), Nelson, Bennett, Pack, Vaulks, Paterson, Adomah (Whyte 90), Murphy (Hoilett 74), Tomlin (Bacuna 80) Subs not used: Etheridge, Flint, Glatzel, Ward.

Goals: Tomlin (73)

Yellows: Morrison

Referee: James Linington

Attendance: 10,049 (1,000 away)

GRAEME JONES ON THE DEFEAT TO CARDIFF CITY

Hatters boss Graeme Jones was left frustrated as he felt his side should have taken advantage of the good chances they had in the first half of their defeat to Cardiff City at Kenilworth Road this afternoon.

Harry Cornick, Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu and Ryan Tunnicliffe all had decent opportunities, but weren’t able to capitalise, before Lee Tomlin fired in from the edge of the box midway through the second half.

Jones said: “We’ve been here before haven’t we. I think there is one thing analysing your work, we’ve set up with a diamond and we out-possessed them, we created more chances than them, we had more shots on target than them [in the first half] and the boys gave absolutely everything they have got.

“The game boils down to two moments where Tomlin, he doesn’t hope to score, he makes sure he can score. We had a really good opportunity with Tunni, an incredible one-v-one with Harry and Collo’s header and you have to take them if you’re going to win the game and we didn’t, that was the difference.

“Izzy was disappointed to come off, but he can’t sustain it and we’ve got to make sure he stays fit because he can still get a lot better. If you analyse the performance then I have got no complaints, we lost the game with the opportunities that we had that we didn’t take and the one opportunity they had is in the back of the net.

"We’ve got another two games this week and then a week, Izzy is frustrated to come off and I don’t want to take him off but you have to think about the next 15 games, not just one. Losing him in the 80th minute with a hamstring, he’s not ready for that so that was the reason."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7vAq1h_9aA – Graeme Jones interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uz5norK1wXY – Match highlights

Hatters now nine points from safety after slipping to Car****diff defeat

Championship: Luton Town 0 Cardiff City 1

A poor second half display saw Luton's hopes of staying in the Championship take yet another body and possibly a knockout blow, as they were beaten 1-0 by a solid if unspectacular Cardiff City side this afternoon.

The Hatters had produced a fine performance in the first period, as they looked the more likely to score for long periods, Harry Cornick going close on two occasions.

Unfortunately and ultimately crucially, they couldn't take their opportunities though, and then were unable to repeat those efforts in the second period, Cardiff getting on top, and staying there, Lee Tomlin netting the winner with 17 minutes remaining.

Town boss Graeme Jones made two changes for the clash, Cameron Carter-Vickers in for his full league debut, while Izzy Brown was fit enough to start for the first time since injuring his hamstring in the 7-0 defeat at Brentford in November.

Town were under immense pressure in the opening 10 minutes, as City put cross after cross into the area, with the hosts just about clearing their lines thanks to Matty Pearson and Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu.

Luton, with Brown at the hub of their best creative moments, had a decent opportunity from an early free kick, the midfielder striking the wall and Ryan Tunnicliffe dragging the rebound well wide.

The Hatters had an even better opportunity on 15 minutes, Glen Rea finding Tunnicliffe, whose marker slipped, allowing him to burst into the box.

He looked up to find Cornick, only for the ball to slip under the attacker's boot, as Cardiff cleared the danger.

Cornick should have put Town in front moments later as found by Brown's interception, he did everything right up until the finish, dragging wide of the far post.

Mpanzu then went close midway through the half, slamming wide on the half volley with his left foot after James Bree's cross fell to him inside the area.

Top scorer James Collins had an opening from Brown's near post corner, diverting wide of the mark, while Glen Rea's header from Bree's corner was easy for Alex Smithies.

A low quality start to the second period saw Joe Bennett's ambitious 25-yarder never troubling Sluga, although he went close on the hour mark when his vicious in-swinging corner looked to be on its way in, but for the outstretched glove of Sluga.

Unlike the first period, the Hatters were struggling to get out of their half at times, City taking a stranglehold on proceedings, with a tiring Brown replaced by Luke Berry.

Dan Potts was inches away from putting those his own net, before Sluga made a superb save to prevent his side falling behind with 19 to go, Pearson getting his back header and backpass all wrong, Callum Paterson nipping in, the Croatian sticking out an instinctive glove to parry the ball away.

However, he was picking the ball out the net on 73 minutes when Lee Tomlin, who had been kept quiet for the majority of the contest, received the ball on the edge of the box, engineering himself a yard and then firing into the bottom corner.

Town almost had an instant leveller, Potts sending over a cross and Collins throwing himself full length only to head over the bar.

Luton boss Jones brought on George Moncur and LuaLua in search of a late leveller, as they could have equalised in stoppage time, Moncur's low shot fumbled by Smithies, but Collins following up, missed his kick, allowing the City keeper to gather.

The result saw Town slip what appears an insurmountable nine points from safety now, after Stoke City beat Charlton Athletic, as the Hatters appear almost certainties to be playing League One football again next term.

Hatters: Simon Sluga, James Bree, Dan Potts, Matty Pearson, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Glen Rea (George Moncur 78), Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu, Ryan Tunnicliffe (Kazenga LuaLua 78), Izzy Brown (Luke Berry 64), Harry Cornick, James Collins (C).

Subs not used: James Shea, Andrew Shinnie, Callum McManaman, Donervon Daniels.

City: Alex Smithies, Joe Bennett, Sean Morrison ©, Will Vaulks, Josh Murphy (Junior Hoilett 74), Callum Paterson, Albert Adomah (Gavin Whyte 90), Marlon Pack, Curtis Nelson, Lee Tomlin (Leandro Bacuna 80), Jazz Richards.

Subs not used: Neil Etheridge, Aden Flint, Robert Glatzel, Danny Ward.

Booked: Morrison 77.

Referee: James Linington.

Attendance: 10,049 (1,000 Cardiff).

Hatters boss left dismayed as Town fail to take their chances** - **Jones frustrated by Cardiff defeat

Missed chances were the deciding factor in Luton’s 1-0 home defeat to Cardiff City this afternoon according to boss Graeme Jones.

The Hatters chief saw his side dominate large parts of the first half, as they should have taken the lead, only for Harry Cornick to miss the target when faced with visiting keeper Alex Smithies.

He had also miscontrolled a pass from Ryan Tunnicliffe, before Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu slammed a half volley wide.

After the break, Lee Tomlin netted with 17 minutes to go, before James Collins might have levelled in stoppage time, unable to turn in once Smithies had fumbled George Moncur's long range attempt.

Jones said: "We’ve been here before haven’t we.

"We set up with the diamond and we out-possessed them, we created more chances than them, we had more shots on target than them, the boys gave absolutely everything they’ve got.

“The game boils down to two moments, where Tomlin, he doesn't hope to score, he makes sure he can score.

"We had a really good opportunity with Tunni (Ryan Tunnicliffe), an incredible one-on-one with Harry, and Collo’s header.

“You have to take them if you're going to win the game and we didn't, that was the difference.

“If you analyse the performance then I've got no complaints.

“We lost the game, with the opportunities we have that we didn’t take and the one opportunity they had was in the back of the net.

“Alan McInally (Sky Sports pundit) said to me, ‘you should have been three up,’ and we should have been clear,

“But should have, could have, Tomlin gets his chance and he makes sure, he cuts your throat, and that’s the difference.”

Although Town pressed for an equaliser once Tomlin had netted, they never really threatened until stoppage time and Moncur's attempt

Jones added: "We're in the right territory, we've committed bodies forward and then I can think of a cross that goes out of play, a set-piece.

"We tried to do as much as we could, we had George on the pitch, we had Kaz (Kazenga LuaLua) on the pitch, we left Collo on the pitch, left Harry on the pitch to try and get back in the game and we couldn't.

"It's a little bit frustrating, we're in the right territory to hurt them, George I can see now with good composure, he goes past someone, has a shot with his left foot, but the game was won and lost earlier on."