Town make one change for Rotherham as Wilshere targets Kenilworth Road victory

Luton boss Jack Wilshere has made one change to his side to face Rotherham United this afternoon as he targets an improvement in the Hatters’ home form.

With midfielder George Saville suspended and also away on international duty, it means leading scorer Jerry Yates has come into the team for his first league start under Town’s new manager, the forward on four goals for the campaign, three of them coming in the Vertu Trophy. Attacker Jacob Brown is also on the bench for the first time this season having come through an hour for the U21s in the week, while youngster Zack Nelson is also back in the matchday squad too.

After suffering a 2-0 loss to Mansfield in his only League One match at Kenilworth Road so far, Wilshere is now hoping his side can improve on a home record that has seen them win three and lose three this term, scoring just five goals and conceding six. Having won their last two away fixtures at Northampton and Stockport County, he said: “I spoke about that (home form) when I came in and the importance of that. I told the story of when I came back with Norwich (last season) and it didn’t feel like that.

"We won the game, and we weren’t great away from home, so to win here was a little bit strange. Away from home, over the last two games, has been great. We obviously picked up a couple of good results against Brighton and against Forest Green which we made difficult, but we got there in the end. Things like that for the players, going through experiences like Forest Green where we were in the game and we were 3-0 up, it feels like, okay this is comfortable and for it to go as quick as it did, but then for the players to bring it back, we have to hold on to that, and try and use that.

"We understand that the fans at times are going to be frustrated, of course they are as it wasn’t that long ago we were in the Premier League, so we have to understand what the fans want to see from us, understand that at times we have to be a bit more pragmatic, a bit more vertical with how we play and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. I know what the fans want to see here and we have ways of doing that as well if teams get aggressive, but building that connection with the fans at home is still something we need to do and we’ll be looking to do that.”

Standing in the Hatters’ way of making it five straight wins is a Rotherham side who are in superb form themselves, winning four of their last five third tier matches, including their last two away matches at Barnsley and Northampton, taking 13 points from a possible 15. They will have forward Jordan Hugill leading the line once more, with two goals to his name this term, the striker signed by West Ham United for £8m back in January 2018 when Wilshere was a player at the Hammers himself, Norwich City also shelling out £2.5m to acquire his services a few years later.

On Town’s opponents, Wilshere added: “The last two away games, I thought they were excellent. I watched them and they’re a real competitive team, an aggressive team. I know Jordan Hugill from West Ham, so I know what he’s all about and the way he plays. We have to be up for it, we have to make sure we win our duels and it’s probably a game where we have to show our quality and that will help us win the game. Of course we have to compete and understand that second balls in the game are vital, but when we get the ball back we have to be good with it. We have to keep it, hurt them in certain areas, but we know what we’re facing.”

Having won their last two matches on the road themselves, Wilshere insists there is still even more improvement that can be sought, adding: “I’m really pleased with the players and probably the progress as they’re good footballers. We just tried to come in with some ideas to put them in better positions, and I’m really pleased with how open they've been to it, how you see them trying to do it on the pitch.

"We’re still chasing consistency and we need consistency within games because you think about the Stockport game and at 2-0, in my opinion we should see the game out better and avoid a little bit of chaos they tried to want. Listen, you'll always face that in this league, we know that, but really happy with the progress. Hopefully we continue with the performance we’ve been showing, with the energy and commitment, to try and win the game and then we need to show our quality.

"From my experiences of the fans so far has been nothing but good, from my first home game where I walked out and I told you how much that meant to me, that moment with the fans and then even in the game I felt like they were with us still. So we know what the fans want to see, we know that we have to approach every single game with the commitment we showed at Stockport, with the desire we showed at Stockport, and then we know that the fans will come with us.”

Hatters: Josh Keeley, Izzy Jones, Mads Andersen, Teden Mengi, Kal Naismith (C), Cohen Bramall, Liam Walsh, Lamine Fanne, Jake Richards, Nahki Wells, Jerry Yates. Subs: James Shea, Milli Alli, Zack Nelson, Jacob Brown, Nigel Lonwijk, Gideon Kodua, Hakeem Odoffin.

Millers: Cameron Dawson, Joe Rafferty (C), Reece James, Joe Powell, Kian Spence, Jordan Hugill, Shaun McWilliams, Martin Sherif, Denzel Hall, Hamish Douglas, Dan Gore. Subs: Ted Cann, Liam Kelly, Dru Yearwood, Josh Benson, Jack Holmes, Harrison Duncan, Josh Ayres. Referee: Josh Hicks.