Luton Town boss Jack Wilshere has acknowledged that today’s clash at home Reading “feels” important as the Royals have overtaken Town in League One so the result could shape their push for the play-offs.
The Hatters are without a win in their last four league matches, though they beat Northampton on Wednesday to reach the final of the Vertu Trophy. While their rivals this afternoon will arrive in Bedfordshire on a five-game unbeaten run.
The clash at Kenilworth Road pits two sides still firmly in the mix for the top six, though Luton’s stuttering bid has seen them slip effectively seven points off the pace, which has left some fans feeling like their top-six bid is over already.
Wilshere admits the situation in the third-tier table naturally heightens the sense of occasion, even if his message to players remains focused on treating the match like any other.
Asked how important it is to beat the teams directly around Luton in the table, Wilshere said: “It’s important to try and pick up points wherever we can. When you look at the league table, which I don’t like to do, but of course, naturally, you do, you see teams around you and then you’re playing against them. Yeah, it feels like it is a big game, an important moment for us.
“My job is to help the players understand how we’re going to win the game rather than focus on external noise, external pressure, or where they are in the league. It’s another game of football. It’s a game of football that we have to attack in the same way we did on Wednesday night, with the same relentlessness to try and attack, to try and stay focused defensively, to try and stop conceding cheap goals. Stop allowing them to get a head-start in games.
“And that’s the process, and that’s what we’re going through. Of course, we’re aware where Reading are in the league, but we have to approach it like it’s another game and try and take three points.”
Wilshere is also keen to extend Luton’s stronger form at Kenilworth Road, where they haven’t lost since the manager’s first game in charge back in October.
“We’re proud of our home record and we want to keep that going,” the Town boss said, adding: “I’ve spoke so many times about what Kenilworth Road is and we have to use that. There’s not many stadiums in England that are like that now, where the fans are close, there’s an energy in the stadium and the players have done really well to create that.
“We have to improve away from home, but tomorrow’s at home, so we look forward to that and trying to extend our undefeated run. But we also understand the challenge.”
The match begins a demanding spell for Luton, with games to follow against Doncaster and Wycombe, who this week replaced Huddersfield in the final play-off spot. From the outside, it appears a crucial run that could define Luton’s promotion hopes.
Wilshere accepts the significance of the fixtures but insists his focus remains firmly on the immediate task.
“The next three games are big, but it’s also my job is to get the message to the players that the next game is the most important, and let’s focus on that,” he said.
Reading arrive in strong attacking form, having failed to score in just one of their last 32 League One matches, underlining the scale of the challenge facing Wilshere’s side as they attempt to reignite their promotion push.
Defensive concentration is an area the Hatters boss believes must improve if Luton are to convert performances into results. On Wednesday night, for example, despite a strong start against a team that are the second lowest scorers in League One, they conceded to Northampton’s first of only two efforts on target all game.
Earlier in the campaign the Hatters built a reputation for clean sheets and there was a point where keeper Josh Keeley was the leading proponent in the division. But the last of his 11 shutouts came five games ago.
Wilshere said: “Earlier on in the season, we praised the players and rightly so for the amount of clean sheets that we kept. And we have to get back to that. We have to get back to that mindset. It is a mindset, in my opinion, to be relentless in defending our box, for 95 minutes.
“I think about the Burton game where I thought we defended our box really, really well until the 93rd minute and we get punished for that. So, yeah, we want to stop those moments because that makes it harder for us to win games. So we have to keep talking about it, we have to keep training it and practising on the training pitch. We need to improve that.”
Recent history between the sides suggests another tight encounter. Luton have lost just one of their last six league meetings with Reading, though that defeat came in December’s 3-2 reverse fixture. The Royals have also failed to score in each of their last three trips to Kenilworth Road.
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