Preview: Bournemouth vs. Luton Town - prediction, team news, lineups

The Cherries subjected Manchester United to a 3-0 Old Trafford mauling in gameweek 16, while the Hatters fought bravely against Manchester City but were on the wrong end of a 2-1 scoreline.

Match preview

To say that Bournemouth silenced the Old Trafford crowd would be slightly inaccurate, as Man United's beleaguered players trudged off the field to the sound of boos from their own supporters last Saturday, having been outfought, outclassed and outplayed by Iraola's in-form Cherries.

The red-hot Dominic Solanke needed just five minutes to breach the Red Devils' backline before Bournemouth exposed Man United's frailties in the air, as Philip Billing and Marcos Senesi both headed home from Marcus Tavernier deliveries in the second 45, before Dango Ouattara had an injury-time effort disallowed for handball.

While thousands of Man United fans elected to catch an early train home, those that stayed until the bitter end made their feelings known, while the Bournemouth contingent revelled in what Adam Smith described as his side's greatest win in recent history.

Victory at the Theatre of Dreams represented a fourth win from five Premier League matches for one of the division's form sides, who have scored at least twice in all of those contests and have surged up the rankings into 14th place, with a healthy 10-point buffer to upcoming foes Luton in the drop zone.

With 16 points to show from their last seven Premier League encounters, only Liverpool (17) have achieved a higher tally than the Cherries in that time, and the hosts are also on a three-game winning streak against newly-promoted sides ahead of the visit of a despondent Luton.

After coming so close yet so far to denying Arsenal victory at Kenilworth Road, Luton welcomed another one of the division's behemoths in Manchester City to their renovated surroundings, where not a single team has been able to pick up a win by more than one goal in the current top-flight campaign.

Hatters folklore was on the verge of being written when Elijah Adebayo towered above the Citizens' defenders to head home the opening goal, but Bernardo Silva's sublime curler and Jack Grealish's finish through the legs of Thomas Kaminski saw the champions turn the tide in their favour during a second-half flurry.

While Rob Edwards and co can be immensely proud of their players' efforts against Arsenal and Man City, failure to cling onto their slender advantages against the title contenders leaves Luton below the dotted line in 18th place and incapable of clambering to safety for the time being; 17th-placed Everton are four points better off.

Last weekend's agonising loss to Man City also represented a third league loss on the trot for Luton, who are also still searching for their maiden Premier League clean sheet, but a four-game scoring streak offers a small sliver of hope that they can extinguish the Bournemouth fire.

Furthermore, Luton earned two victories from their last three games over Bournemouth before the Cherries returned to the Premier League table in 2022, but the most recent Championship clash at the Vitality in September 2021 ended with Bournemouth coming up trumps 2-1, as first-half strikes from Billing and Solanke made the difference.

Bournemouth Premier League form:

L

W

W

D

W

W

Luton Town Premier League form:

D

L

W

L

L

L

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Team News

No Bournemouth players reported any physical problems following their famous beating of Man United - a welcome sight for Iraola as he continues to work around a lengthy list of absentees in Tyler Adams (thigh), Alex Scott (knee), Emiliano Marcondes (foot), Darren Randolph (illness), Ryan Fredericks (calf), Lloyd Kelly (hamstring) and Max Aarons (thigh).

Hamed Traore was unable to contribute to the win over the Red Devils either, having come down with a fever earlier this month, but even if the 23-year-old's immune system wins out in time for Saturday, a recall to the first XI is unlikely.

Indeed, Iraola ought to keep faith with the majority of his Old Trafford starters, but Billing's goal off the bench puts the Dane in a strong position to displace Antoine Semenyo.

As for Luton, right-back Issa Kabore is at Edwards's disposal again, having been ineligible to face parent club Man City last weekend, but Marvelous Nakamba is now banned for a totting-up of yellow cards.

Thankfully for Edwards, he is spoiled for choice when it comes to midfield options, as all of Albert Sambi Lokonga, Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu and Tahith Chong could step in for Nakamba alongside Ross Barkley, who has been rolling back the years in the Hatters engine room.

Cauley Woodrow (calf), Dan Potts (ankle), Reece Burke (thigh) and Gabriel Osho (knee) form a quartet of injury victims for the visitors, but Edwards is hopeful that the latter will recover in time for the trip south.

Bournemouth possible starting lineup:

Neto; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Billing, Cook; Kluivert, Christie, Tavernier; Solanke

Luton Town possible starting lineup:

Kaminshi; Osho, Mengi, Lockyer; Kabore, Mpanzu, Barkley, Doughty; Townsend, Adebayo, Brown

We say: Bournemouth 3-1 Luton Town

Never before have Bournemouth won three Premier League games on the bounce while keeping three clean sheets, but with Luton showcasing plenty of belief and threat in the final third, the Cherries may be denied a piece of club history on Saturday.

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