Luton Town and Bristol City meet in the Championship on Tuesday evening exactly a year after their last encounter.
The Robins were 3-0 winners on December 29, 2019 – their first victory over the Hatters in their last nine attempts.
Match preview
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It was a defeat that left Luton 23rd in the Championship table, and it is testament to the work of Nathan Jones that the club are much higher than that position a year on.
The Hatters head into Tuesday's game in 15th – the lowest they have been all season – and a win could see them end 2020 in the top half of the table.
Jones was left frustrated by his side's 2-1 defeat to Reading on Boxing Day, as they were left chasing the game after conceding two first-half goals. Kazenga LuaLua's strike from distance came too late in the game to save them.
Luton are unbeaten in their last five home matches and have taken points off promotion-chasing Norwich City and Bournemouth at Kenilworth Road in the last month.
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It makes it a tricky trip for Bristol City to make, with the Robins currently three points outside of the playoffs in ninth.
They ended a three-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over Wycombe Wanderers on Boxing Day as substitute Famara Diedhiou lashed home the winning goal in the 87th minute.
Dean Holden's side have won half of their 10 away games so far this season and only five teams in the Championship have picked up more points on the road so far.
However Bristol City have not won at Kenilworth Road since 2000, while their first two away games of the new year will see the Robins travel to high-flying Brentford and Norwich City.
Luton Town Championship form: LDWLDL
Bristol City Championship form: LWLLLW
Team News
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Luton looked considerably better after Nathan Jones made three half-time changes against Reading, so Rhys Norrington-Davies and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall could both be in line for starts.
Jones may also decide to bring Simon Sluga back into the side following the goalkeeper's return to fitness. James Bree is the Hatters' only confirmed absentee.
Bristol City's injury situation was made worse on Boxing Day as Zak Vyner and Callum O'Dowda were both forced off, while Dean Holden admitted post-match that Jack Hunt did well to stay on after suffering a gash on his foot in the first half.
That trio will be assessed in the build up to the game, but if they are not fit, there could be opportunities for Adrian Mariappa, Han-Noah Massengo and Taylor Moore.
Famara Diedhiou is pushing for a start after once again scoring as a substitute, but Holden has said that he is not quite fully fit.
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Sluga; Cranie, Lockyer, Bradley, Norrington-Davies; Rea, Dewsbury-Hall, Berry; Clark, Collins, Cornick
Bristol City possible starting lineup:
Bentley; Mariappa, Moore, Kalas, Rowe; Bakinson, Nagy, Massengo; Semenyo, Martin, Wells
We say: Luton Town 1-1 Bristol City
A well-balanced game is likely to be in store at Kenilworth Road. Bristol City perhaps possess more quality, but Luton have shown themselves to be hard to break down, particularly at home, and will battle well to take a point against a Robins side who struggle for consistency and have a host of injury issues.
Top betting tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Bristol City win with a probability of 38.37%. A win for Luton Town had a probability of 34.59% and a draw had a probability of 27%.
The most likely scoreline for a Bristol City win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.64%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.25%) and 0-2 (6.84%). The likeliest Luton Town win was 1-0 (9.99%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.83%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with a 7.7% likelihood.
