Luton came from a goal down against basement battlers Blackpool on Easter Monday, with Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu bagging a brace. Here are our takeaways from the victory.
Pelly saves the day
Even Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu thought, for a second year running, that his season was over at the business end, when he landed heavily on his knee at Sheffield United and ended the 1-0 victory on crutches and despondent.
So, it was wonderful to see his name on the team-sheet for the win over arch-rivals Watford nine days earlier. He was outstanding that day and he proved the difference against Blackpool.
His sumptuous strike with the last kick of the first half showed a different more cultured side to a player whose rare goalscoring exploits have been self-styled as bangers, though his second lived up to that billing.
The television cameras didn’t truly pick up the cleverness of his curler, but those in the Main Stand will have witnessed a treat for the eyes as he picked the only spot where there wasn’t a sea of Seasiders’ legs.
And it was worth the 1,451-day wait for a brace from the midfielder when he slammed into the top corner. That took his tally to three for the season, equalling the goalscoring of his past two terms combined, plus his 2019/2020 return. In fact, apart from 2018/19, where he netted his only other brace against Accrington Stanley for a haul of five strikes, this is Mpanzu’s best goalscoring season and, arguably his best-ever campaign.
Certainly, the random football Twitter accounts were ablaze with Pelly’s potential, but they were only preaching to the unconverted.
For Luton fans, he’s already made history in becoming the only Hatter to play and score for the club in four different divisions. What’s the betting he breaks more records as the only player to star for one club in every division from the National League to the Premier League?
Morris head and shoulders above the rest
He’s scored more eye-catching goals this season, but his striker’s instincts to be in the right place at the right time, to capitalise on James Husband’s mistake, highlights what a complete forward Carlton Morris is.
He’s now on 17 for the season, which is one more than Elijah Adebayo’s top-scoring total of last term and the best striking season for any Hatter in the second tier since Steve Howard’s 18 goals in 2004/2005.
But even despite his goalscoring talents, the former Barnsley man was an outright menace for the Seasiders, particularly in the air, as the frontman won an impressive nine aerial duals, which was the same as the combined total of Town’s centre back trio Amari’i Bell (one), Tom Lockyer (three) and the returning Reece Burke (five).
Boss Rob Edwards summed it up succinctly when he said: “Carlton did what he does so well. His all-round performance was very, very good and another vital goal that keeps his run going.”
Woodrow quality can still be key
The summer capture declared a “marquee signing” by former boss Nathan Jones has not had the season that billing promised when he returned to the club that raised him through the ranks.
The insistence, by the Welshman, that the forward could play the number 10 role didn’t quite work out, but there’s no doubt that Woodrow still has game-changing quality. Take, for example, his late winner against Norwich in current Boss Rob Edwards’ first home game in charge.
That’s sure to wind up on the shortlist for goal of the season, so his contribution against Blackpool probably won’t get the plaudits it deserves… but it should.
His measured byline cutback for Mpanzu was so inch-perfect, the midfielder, not renowned for his shooting accuracy, could barely miss.
But more important, it shows that, unlike last season, when an injured Elijah Adebayo was forlornly wheeled out to save the season late in the play-off second leg at Huddersfield, Town have plenty of firepower to call upon if the going gets tough at the sharp end of this season.
The maths is simple now
Town sit deservedly third in the Championship, with a three-point gap over Middlesbrough but, more importantly, a generous nine-point buffer between them and the chasing play-off pack headed up by a resurgent Preston North End.
But with the Lilywhites on 62 points, the best they can hope for from the remaining five matches is 77 points.
The Hatters are currently on 71 so, realistically, two more victories will ensure their place in the play-offs for a second year running, especially when you consider North End would need a 20-strike swing to overtake Town on goal difference.
More of a conundrum is whether Town can overhaul second-placed Sheffield United’s five-point gap, as the Blades have a game in hand, but a potentially disruptive FA Cup semi-final still to come against Manchester City and five Championship games in two weeks this month. Stranger things have happened.
Men of the match?
There’s been many a case of the match day sponsors at Kenilworth Road selecting, shall we say a (presumably) hospitality booze-fuelled, candidate. More often than not they tend to just dish out the honour to the man that’s scored the most goals.
And with that in mind, Pelly can feel hard done by not to get the gong after his first double in four years.
That’s not to say that Marvelous Nakamba – who did get the nod and is the deserved player of the month – wasn’t his usual imperious best, but until Pelly deceived everyone with the deftest of curlers, with the last kick of the first half, it’s fair to say Town were treading through treacle against Blackpool.
And no-one could argue if his second, to make it 3-1, made it into the goal of the season debate.
As Mpanzu joked afterwards about missing out on the man of the match award: “I don’t know who’s voting up there, but I need to have a word!
“But then first half Marv was probably the only player that was good. His winning the ball back, he’s like a little N’golo Kante!
“He’s been fantastic, so I can’t complain, as long as we get three points, whoever gets man of the match, credit to them.”
You could make a case for both men to have shared the spoils (not that that’s ever happened), but Edwards was certainly full of praise for both.
On Nakamba he said: “I love him, I love him, he’s some man.
“He’s so important to the team, you can see the way he plays, he gels everything together.
“When we score I can see him telling everyone, ‘come on, keep it going, concentrate.’
“He just knows what to do, knows where to be, so calm with the ball, but it’s like there’s three of him out there.”
On Mpanzu, the manager said: “He epitomises everything that the club stands for.
“He’s the life and soul around the place, around the training ground.
“If we’ve had a defeat, or if we’ve had a win, he doesn’t change and you need people like that as if you get too high or too low in football, it’s not a good place to be.
“He’s brilliant off the pitch and since we’ve come in, I can’t speak highly enough of him on the pitch as well, he’s a really important player for us.”
This blog is a great way to stay up to date on the latest news and trends in the industry.
This blog is an invaluable resource for anyone looking to stay informed and educated on the topic.
You need to be a part of a contest for one of the greatest websites on the internet. Im going to recommend this site!