In a woeful week, Luton lurched to new lows as they slumped to a deserved Vertu Trophy defeat at a much-changed Cambridge United.
Without a manager after yesterday’s sacking of Matt Bloomfield, the Hatters showed their problems run deeper than the man in the dugout, who for this tie was the interim coach Alex Lawless.
Principally, they can’t keep goals out – having conceded two or more three times on the spin – struggle to score them and do not look like they have any ability to change things when they go wrong, which they frequently do. All this against a League Two United side with ten changes from their weekend’s endeavours.
Keeper James Shea summed it up afterwards, telling the BBC: “When you don’t think it can get any worse, it does.”
Even the early high point of Mads Andersen’s 15th minute opener was a mix-up from a corner that landed at the Dane’s feet a few yards from goal. He couldn’t miss.
From open play, a strong-looking Town line-up – albeit with six swaps from Saturday – were unconvincing, especially on the occasions that they got a sight on goal. Chances came and went for Shayden Morris, Milli Alli and Lasse Nordås, but their League Two opponents created just as many and showed more expertise in despatching theirs. Cambridge could and perhaps should have had more. And that is not only a huge concern for Luton, but has been symptomatic of this season and the last.
The third goal in particular would be condemned from a Sunday league side, as debutant keeper Ben Hughes’ goal kick bounced straight through Luton’s backline to Elias Kachunga, who rubbed salt in the wound with a cheeky dink over a stranded Shea.
That was the United forward’s second goal to cap off the scoring, though his first, to put his side 2-1 up, was equally as excruciating for leaky Luton as, somehow, in a crowded penalty area, he was left all alone to flick home a byline cutback.
Cambridge’s first goal on 33 minutes was a hold-your-hands-up moment of pure quality from the hosts’ 20-year-old academy product Glenn McConnell, as he belted home a 25-yard shot as the springboard to bossing the visitors’ midfield.
From that point, the only thing worth cheering for the travelling Town fans was the appearance of Luton legend Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu, who came on as a late sub for the hosts. And after Tom Lockyer’s departure from the club was confirmed just before the kick-off, the warm final whistle ovation for the only man to have ever gone from non-league to the Premier League with the same club, was a stark reminder of how far and how quickly things have fallen for the Hatters.
The trouble for Town, and the next manager who may take charge of this current crop, is that the very obvious blunders aside, there was just never a sense that Luton believed they could salvage anything once Kachunga put Cambridge in front, 58 seconds after the restart. Movin’ and groovin’ this team aren’t.
For a brief period yesterday, once the axe swung for Bloomfield, the narrative was that a new man, with only 11 league games gone, could still shoot Luton to League One promotion. That was the ambition revealed by CEO Gary Sweet less than a fortnight ago. But with confidence so clearly non-existent, that end goal looks as likely as Luton scoring from open play against a fourth-tier side.
In fact, on this evidence, the rebuild job for a new manager to meet that table-topping target seems closer to mission impossible.
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