Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray is keen not to underestimate Luton as the two teams prepare to meet in the Championship play-off semi-final.
Helped by Blackburn’s victory against Millwall, the Black Cats sneaked into sixth place in the table while the Hatters finished third.
Both sides have recent play-off experience, with Sunderland promoted into the second tier with a win against Wycombe in last year’s League One play-offs.
However, Luton missed out on the chance to earn Premier League promotion after being beaten in last season’s semi-finals by Huddersfield, but Mowbray insisted the Hatters will be aiming to “put that right”.
He said: “(Luton) had (a play-off run) last year as well, it’s sometimes easy to have a narrative of ‘little Luton’ but they were in the play-offs last year as well so they’ll have the experience of the play-offs.
“They’ll be disappointed they didn’t get through the play-offs last year but they’ll be trying to put that right this year.
“These games are all big games and the mentality of our group has been – because of the injuries, because of the adversity – to express ourselves, play as we play, do what we’re good at and see where it takes us.
“I don’t see a reason to change that, this weekend, the game itself is a big game. The coverage, it’s the post-season, go and express yourself, go and show everybody who’s watching your individual talent, your collective talent and see if we can get a result against a team who’ve done exceptionally well.”
The first leg takes place in front of a sell-out crowd at the Stadium of Light on Saturday, but both clubs face a difficult test as their two meetings in the Championship this season have both ended in 1-1 draws.
The most recent clash came in March when Amad Diallo’s late penalty cancelled out Alfie Doughty’s second-half strike, and Mowbray knows how tough a team the Hatters are.
“As I said seven or eight weeks ago when we played them, you could feel they’re difficult to break down,” he said.
“They were a very strong, very robust, a very athletic team and at times leaving man-for-man at the back, pushing in and leading a high press.
“It takes you out of your rhythm really, so it’s going to be a difficult game and I think all of these games we shouldn’t look at 90 minutes on Saturday; even if we’re winning, losing or drawing there’s another 90 minutes.”
Neymar suffers fresh injury blow
Neymar sustained a new injury as he was forced off during Al-Hilal's AFC Champions League Elite win over Esteghlal.
Aleksandar Mitrovic plundered a hat-trick on Monday to seal a 3-0 win.
But Al-Hilal's victory was soured by an injury to Neymar, who had to make way just 29 minutes after he came on as a second-half substitute.
The Brazilian, who has just returned from over a year out of action following a serious knee injury, was forced off with what appeared to be a thigh issue.
Indeed, Monday's appearance was only the 32-year-old's second for Al-Hilal since his comeback.
He has featured just seven times for the Saudi Pro League champions in all competitions since his big-money move from Paris Saint-Germain in 2023.
Burnley 'emotionally struggled' in Millwall defeat, concedes Parker
Scott Parker said his young Burnley side "struggled emotionally" in their 1-0 defeat to Millwall, a loss that snapped their nine-game winning run in the Championship.
The decisive moment came in the 52nd minute when Millwall captain Jake Cooper powerfully headed Femi Azeez's cross beyond the grasp of James Trafford.
But the Lions, who moved up to seventh in the table with the win, were worthy winners at The Den.
They registered 12 shots compared to Burnley's eight, ending with an expected goals (xG) total of 0.83 compared to their opponents' 0.17.
Parker's side managed just one effort on target, which came in the fourth minute courtesy of Luca Koleosho, with the Clarets boss lamenting his side's display in the final third.
"We came here knowing it's a tough place to come and dominated the first 25 minutes but the game went away from us at the back end of that first-half," Parker said.
"Emotionally, with a young team like ours we struggled in the big moments.
"We need to be more progressive in the front third but it's a really young team, a brand new team and we need to keep working hard.
"We lacked spark in the second-half and the game has been decided on a set play."
But for Millwall boss Neil Harris, he masterminded the Lions' first league triumph over Burnley since a 3-1 victory back in February 2012.
It was also a third consecutive 1-0 win for Millwall. Since the start of last season, they’ve won 13 Championship games by that scoreline, at least five more than any other side.
And Harris believes his side warranted their victory, insisting that his tactical decisions made the Clarets run out of ideas.
"It was a strong result and I thought Burnley ran out of ideas," Harris said.
"We grew into the game after Burnley were slightly better in the first 20 minutes, but I couldn't see them scoring against us.
"You just need a moment here at The Den and Jake Cooper produces it and, if anything, I thought we'd get the second goal.
"If we win games 1-0 it's fine and the first goal in the Championship is so important, especially for us."
Rodgers delighted as Celtic rout Aberdeen in semi-final
Celtic booked their place in the Scottish League Cup final after hammering Aberdeen 6-0 at Hampden Park on Saturday.
The 21-time winners of the tournament were inspired by a Daizen Maeda hat-trick in a near-perfect performance against the Scottish Premiership's second-placed side.
Manager Brendan Rodgers was delighted with the result and performance from his side.
"It was a testament to our players and the demands they have. They play every week in big games. We have to manage this group through every game," he told Premier Sports.
"It was up to us to decide the game and the players did that. They were brilliant today. We were more aggressive in the second half.
"Aberdeen have had an excellent season, they will continue to work well I'm sure."
The result was Aberdeen's first defeat in 17 matches in all competitions this season, with a 2-2 draw at Celtic Park last month the only time they had previously failed to win.
Cameron Carter-Vickers got the scoring under way with a header 29 minutes in, before the brilliant Maeda sat down goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov to set up Kyogo Furuhashi for a second three minutes later.
Maeda then got in on the act himself on 40 minutes before the game briefly descended into farce on the stroke of half-time, with Rodgers shown a yellow card for kicking away a ball that had gone out before slipping over.
"To be fair, I was raging because we had given the ball away," he said.
"I have my moments, like every manager. It was just the game, even though we were comfortable at 3-0.
"It was a deserved yellow card. The speed of the ball [was the issue]. I just wanted to keep the tempo of the game."
Celtic and Maeda picked up where they left off in the second half to make it 4-0 in the 50th minute before Nicolas Kuhn hammered in a fifth on the hour.
The rout was complete when Maeda wrapped up his hat-trick as he finished off a flowing attacking move with five minutes to go.
After the match, Rodgers continued to be effusive about his team, who will face either Rangers or Motherwell in the final.
"An outstanding team performance. You come up against a team that has been so, so good. We knew it would be a challenge," he told BBC Scotland.
"We had to bring our A-game and the players did that, in particular during the second half.
"We were ruthless. We worked the ball really well to create the space and made good runs.
"It's a beautiful pitch here at Hampden. It's perfect for the football we want to play."
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