Town chief not interested in putting the pressure on others in the play-off race as he looks to mastermind Blackpool victory

Luton boss Nathan Jones isn’t worried about putting the pressure on the rest of the Championship play-off chasers going into his side’s clash with Blackpool at Kenilworth Road this afternoon.

The Hatters take on the Tangerines in a 12.30pm kick-off due to the game being played live on Sky Sports, meaning their game will be done and dusted before the rest of the division kick-off.

Town go into the fixture six points clear of Millwall in seventh and eight ahead of Blackburn, Middlesbrough and QPR.

Victory for the hosts would put Jones’ side out of sight of Blackburn and QPR who have three games to go.

Should both Middlesbrough and Millwall fail to win, then it’s job done for Luton as well, the Hatters sure of a place above the dotted line with two matches left.

However, Jones insisted he wasn’t taking those calculations into account, saying: “We’re not looking at doing anything other than winning a football game.

"If we can win the football game, it puts us in a good position.

"That’s what we’re looking at, not if we can put pressure on anyone else.

“If we can get three points then we’re in a very good position because, historically, 74 points is normally good enough to achieve something in the season.”

Last year, 77 points were needed to finish sixth, while looking at the last five terms, an average of 75 has been enough, but Jones knows that can’t always be relied on, continuing: “You have no idea. If you got anything around 74,75 points then historically you get in the top six but that might change this year.

"Normally if you are on 40,41 points you get relegated but that isn’t the case this year, it’s a strange year this year.

"What we have to do, we’ve got three games left, we need to pick up as many points as we can.

"Mathematically five or six points would do it so we have to aim for that, and if we get that then it’ll be a wonderful season.”

With Huddersfield securing their place in the play-offs last night by beating Barnsley 2-1 to relegate the Tykes in the process, it leaves three spots to play for.

Jones’ determination for Luton to be one of the remaining trio means he is giving the Tangerines his full focus, adding: “It’s a cliche, but Blackpool is the only game we’re thinking about now.

"If you start looking too far ahead then you become tripped up.

"I remember, and I say this with the greatest of respect, an article about a month ago, saying that Rotherham are course for 100 points (in League One), big goal difference, this, that and the other.

"I know that Rotherham, Paul Warne especially, won’t be thinking like that, but sometimes media get involved and start getting carried away, so all we think about is the next game, we can’t think about anything else.

"We can’t rest players to think, this game or that game.

"Cardiff on the weekend went to Hull and played a totally different system and team against us and rested big players for our game, we haven’t got that luxury of being able to do that.

"Every game now, every point is vital for us, and that’s what it is, we have to treat every single game exactly the same.”