Luton Town take on Birmingham City at Kenilworth Road on the opening Championship weekend on Saturday.
The Hatters consistently punched above their weight to secure a playoff spot last season, while the Blues flirted with relegation before finishing 20th.
Match preview
© Reuters
Indeed, even the most ardent Luton fan would have been hard pushed to predict their side finishing in the top six of the Championship last season.
Under Nathan Jones, though, the club has been on an incredible journey. The Welshman guided the Hatters out of League Two before doing the lion's share of the work which saw them win League One in 2019, finding himself back at the club in the Championship after an unsuccessful and brief spell with Stoke City.
The 49-year-old oversaw an impressive top-half finish upon their return to England's second tier before taking them to the brink of the Premier League last season. Ultimately, they fell just short despite arguably being the better team across two legs against Huddersfield Town, but there is no suggestion of Luton resting on their laurels ahead of the forthcoming campaign.
Kal Naismith's departure to Bristol City could prove a blow in defence after the 30-year-old enjoyed a stellar season, but Jones has clearly upgraded his side's attacking capabilities with the signings of Carlton Morris, Cauley Woodrow and Luke Freeman.
An unbeaten pre-season - including a 1-1 draw against Premier League outfit West Ham United in their final outing - has only boosted confidence further ahead of a very winnable looking opening match at home against Birmingham on Saturday.
© Reuters
Given that Birmingham would only have survived relegation to League One by goal difference had Reading and Derby County not received their six and 21 point deductions respectively last season, it was perhaps no surprise to see the club relieve Lee Bowyer of his managerial duties.
However, in truth, the one-time England international was dealing with incredibly difficult circumstances at St Andrew's.
The second city-based side have finished between 17th and 20th in each of the last six seasons in the Championship, with many feeling their luck could be set to run out in the shape of relegation this season.
John Eustace, whose only previous spell as a manager came at National League North side Kidderminster Harriers between 2016 and 2018, has surprisingly been chosen as Bowyer's successor. The 42-year-old is yet to be handed any money in the transfer market, with experienced goalkeeper John Ruddy arriving on a free transfer and Przemysław Placheta joining on a season-long loan from Norwich City.
In attack, Eustace can still call upon experienced players at this level with the likes of Troy Deeney, Scott Hogan and Lukas Jutkiewicz, but all three are in their thirties and potentially beyond their peak years.
The former Watford midfielder clearly has a tough job on his hands, with Saturday's trip to a side as competitive as Luton far from an ideal season opener, especially after only one win from four pre-season friendlies.
- W
- W
- W
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Aside from goalkeeper James Shea, who is still recovering from a knee injury, Luton appear to have a clean bill of health to select from for Saturday's clash.
Jones could opt to field the same XI which performed superbly to hold a strong West Ham side to a 1-1 draw last weekend, meaning that Alfie Doughty should receive his competitive debut for the club at left wing-back.
New signings Woodrow and Morris may have to bide their time before proving themselves worthy of ousting the likes of Harry Cornick or Elijah Adebayo in attack.
Birmingham, meanwhile, do not appear to have any major injury concerns at all ahead of Saturday's trip to Bedfordshire.
Eustace admitted that he was pleased with his side's performance in last weekend's 2-2 draw against La Liga outfit Rayo Vallecano, so may elect to name an unchanged side.
Thirty-five-year-old Ruddy is primed to make his competitive debut between the sticks, then, with Hogan and Deeney combining in attack.
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Horvath; Bree, Burke, Osho, Bradley, Doughty; Campbell, Berry, Clark; Adebayo, Cornick
Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Ruddy; Sanderson, Roberts, Trusty; Colin, Woods, Bacuna, James, Placheta; Hogan, Deeney
We say: Luton Town 1-0 Birmingham City
On paper, there appears to be little splitting these sides, but in reality they are two teams likely heading in different directions.
We do not envisage many goals on Saturday, but the hosts should have enough about them to earn three points and get their season off to a winning start.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
