Luton Town will travel to the City Ground to face Nottingham Forest in the third round of this year’s FA Cup, marking an intriguing clash between two historic clubs with plenty of encounters in cup competitions.
For Luton, this tie represents an opportunity to rekindle Premier League memories, with the two clubs clashing last year in the top flight only for the Hatters to get relegated back to the Championship after one season.
Both sides were embroiled in the relegation battle and Forest were only this season fined £750,000 for a social media post last season aimed at video assistant referee Stuart Attwell, where after a clash with fellow strugglers Everton, their official Twitter account posted: “Three extremely poor decisions — three penalties not given — which we simply cannot accept,” Forest said on their official X account. We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times. NFFC will now consider its options.”
However, Town did not lose to Forest last term, extending their unbeaten record against the Reds. And their last meeting in the FA Cup came in 2007 where Luton knocked Forest out thanks to a solitary Calvin Andrews goal.
Town’s last loss to Forest in the competition was in 1971. However, it was the Reds who beat Luton in the Hatters’ only ever appearance in the final when they lost in 1959, while Nottingham have also beaten Town in the League Cup final in 1989, a year after Town famously lifted the trophy, their only major piece of silverware.
But in this current season, the match-up offers Luton a potential morale boost, or at least a break from their league struggles, which have been compound by a disastrous six straight away defeats. It will be a chance to test themselves against the Premier League side outside the pressure of Championship survival.
The third round is often a stage for underdogs to shine, and Luton’s fans will dream of adding another chapter to their FA Cup history. With the game set for early January, both clubs have time to fine-tune their squads during the hectic festive period. But, before that, Luton will host Swansea City in the Championship this Saturday, aiming to get back to winning ways after two straight defeats.
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