Manchester City staged a second half revival as they came from behind to beat an impressive Luton Town 2-1.
Second half goals from Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish ensured Pep Guardiola’s side closed the gap on league leaders Liverpool to four points.
Hear are five things we learned from the match…
Haaland-less City struggle in front of goal
As expected, Manchester City were the dominant force against Luton, but they had to do it without talisman Erling Haaland. The Norwegian did not travel with the squad to Bedfordshire and the lack of his presence up top was felt by the Citizens. Pep Guardiola’s side created numerous chances and tested Thomas Kaminski plenty of times, but the lack of conviction without their top scorer looks a real issue. City still came from behind to win but their weaknesses have been well and truly exposed.
Luton need Kenilworth Road to be a fortress
Much like Nottingham Forest did last year, Luton need to make their home form count if they are to stay in the Premier League. But whilst Forest made home advantage count, the Hatters have only mustered five points from eight matches so far. Luton are spurred on by their home support, but with so little points to show for their brilliant support, it is now the time the Bedfordshire side make Kenilworth Road a fortress, with only 11 home matches left to play.
Ross Barkley looks back to his best
Ross Barkley’s move to Luton in the summer on a free looks to have been an inspired move. The midfielder has been in great form for the Hatters in the last couple of weeks, scoring against Arsenal then being influential in Luton’s opener against City. Playing with zero expectations, the England international appears to be enjoying his football once again under Rob Edwards. If the 30-year-old continues playing how he is, there is a real possibility the Hatters could stay up.
Rob Edwards’ stock continues to rise
A painful defeat to take for Luton despite all their hard work, but the job Rob Edwards has done at the club has been next to extraordinary. Playing against the financial mite of Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal etc, Edwards’ side have pushed their superstar opponents to the very end of tall their matches. It probably took a couple of games for Luton and Edwards to dust off wow factor of the Premier League, but under the former-Watford manager, the Hatters continue to define expectation. One for bigger things in the future.
D-day for Kalvin Phillips
The television camera panned across to Kalvin Phillips on the Manchester City bench. The midfielder, once again left on the sidelines by Pep Guardiola, had the look of a player who knows his career at the Citizens is nearing the end. The former Leeds captain has racked up only 89 minutes of Premier League football this season in his four league appearances. The 28-year-old’s future has been of much discussion in recent weeks, with the midfielder set to continue his footballing career at pastures new come January.
