The Hatters will be looking to extend their perfect start to the 2020/21 campaign when Derby County visit Kenilworth Road tomorrow afternoon.
Town made it three wins from three in midweek after defeating Reading in the Carabao Cup second round, whilst the Rams suffered a 2-1 loss against fellow Championship side Preston.
You can follow the game live on iFollow Hatters by purchasing a £10 match pass, which you can do so by clicking the image at the foot of the page.
Nathan Jones said:
(Please note these quotes are taken from Nathan’s press conference on Thursday, click here to listen to the full version)
On facing Wayne Rooney: “We’ve just said to the players that we never look too far ahead but these are the games you want to play. Derby have been a Premier League club, then next we play Man United and then we play Watford, three huge games but what a week, what a week to be a Luton Town player, test yourself, whether that’s against Wayne Rooney, Jack Marriott, Matt Clarke, whoever it is.
“To have those tests is what you want, this is why we wanted to get to this league so we could do that before trying to go again. It is a good thing for them to play against Wayne Rooney, but they have to relish that because Wayne has been a legend for the game. England, Man United, top scorer, a wonderful career and it will be great to test ourselves against that.”
On Jack Marriott returning to Kenilworth Road: “It will be nice if he doesn’t score, won’t be great if he scores but it’s always nice to see Jack. Jack did very well for us here and we evolved, carried on evolving and Jack was one that moved on and it was a good deal for the club. It enabled us to bring in the likes of Elliot Lee and James Collins, so it was a good deal for us and we wish Jack all the best, apart from two games this season.”
Who?
Derby County have been a Championship outfit ever since their relegation from the Premier League in 2008. The Rams have the reached the play-off final twice since but failed to reach the top flight.
Manager Manager Phillip Cocu took over in the summer – succeeding Frank Lampard – and achieved a 10thplace finish last season.
The manager – Phillip Cocu
Cocu enjoyed a long, successful career as a player, turning out for the likes of PSV Eindhoven and Spanish giants Barcelona.
The 49-year-old also amassed 101 international appearances for the Netherlands, before retiring from playing and moving into coaching and management.
Cocu guided Derby to a 10th place finish in the Championship last season, a position they will look to improve upon this time around.
Main threat – Wayne Rooney
Rooney, 34, is Man United’s all-time top goalscorer with 253 goals and also leads the way for England too, ranking as the all-time record goalscorer with 53 goals in 120 international caps.
After joining in January, the Englishman scored five Championship goals and his first came against the Hatters in his fourth game for the Rams.
When and where?
Kick-off is 3pm at Kenilworth Road on Saturday 19th September.
Man in the middle?
The referee for tomorrow’s game is Dean Whitestone, who last refereed the Hatters during the 1-1 draw with Barnsley in July. He took charge of 30 matches last season, dishing out 86 yellows and three red cards.
Played before?
The Hatters were victorious in a five-goal thriller the last time the two sides met at Kenilworth Road back in January.
The all-time head-to-head record is extremely close, with just one win separating the teams. Derby have 17 wins to their name, Luton 16, whilst they have shared 10 draws.
Our Town
We are able to confirm that the digital version of the Hatters’ matchday programme, Our Town, will continue to be sent free to season ticket holders an hour before kick-off in the build-up to home matches.
Non-season ticket holders can purchase a digital version of the programme for £2. In addition to the e-programme options, supporters who wish to buy a hard copy of the match programme can do so for £5.
All the information and how to purchase can be found by clicking here.
Follow the action
Match passes to watch the 3pm kick-off live on iFollow Hatters are now available to purchase by clicking on the image at the foot of the page.
Season ticket holder iFollow codes for the Derby game have been distributed by email. For full details on how to redeem your code, follow the instructions here.
We are also pleased to inform supporters that an agreement has been reached over a new contract with BBC Three Counties Radio in order for the station to broadcast live commentary of our matches from tomorrow onwards.
