Scunthorpe vs Luton Town Predictions

When Scunthorpe went away to Bristol Rovers and returned north with all three points in mid-November, manager Stuart McCall would’ve been hoping to see things improve on the pitch, though the Iron have since move in the wrong direction. They’ve now lost five on the bounce and are struggling badly.

Even when teams are struggling, there’s often something to be optimistic about; it may be that they’ve been unfortunate by not getting the rub of the green in front of goal or perhaps they keep getting edged out in tight games, though it must be difficult for Iron fans to be optimistic at present. Wednesday’s hosts have failed to score in each of their last four, while they’ve shipped a total of nine goals during that time. They’ve also been bettered in terms of expected goals in each of their last six, so it really isn’t that they’ve been unlucky.

Given their current form, welcoming Luton, who’ve been irresistible for some time, to Glanford Park is a daunting task for McCall’s men. However, Luton, as good as they’ve been, haven’t been quite as untouchable on their travels as they have been at the fortress that is Kenilworth Road. What’s more, there have been times where Scunthorpe, as poor as they’ve been defensively, have got involved offensively on their own patch. The Iron have scored in all but three of their home matches this season, while they’re averaging 1.69 expected goals for, which tells us that perhaps creating chances at home isn’t their biggest problem.

Speaking of creating chances, Luton have excelled when it comes to carving out scoring opportunities during the current campaign. As things stand in League One, only league leaders Portsmouth have accumulated more expected goals than Luton. What’s more, the Hatters have scored more goals than any other team in the division. Fractionally over two thirds of those goals have come at home, but they have only failed to score in three of their 11 away games, while they’ve five in their last two on their travels. The fact that they created plenty and scored twice away at Coventry recently suggests that they should have no problem making their presence felt against one of the worst defences in the league.

Given that Luton been flying, and Scunthorpe have gone nowhere other than downwards in recent weeks, it would be very easy to support the visitors, simply because they are the better side. That said, at the prices, the bet that catches the eye is ‘Over 2.5 Goals & Both Teams to Score’. For all Scunthorpe don’t have the defensive quality to keep the Hatters at bay – only Plymouth have given away more expected goals than Scunthorpe, who’ve shipped more goals at home than any other side in League One this season – they have offered enough going forward to suggest that they can get competitive against a Luton side that has kept just three clean sheets on the road this time around. Furthermore, Nathan Jones’ men have shipped an average of 1.51 expected goals away from home, which tells us that they can be got at.