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2026-08-27 - Chelsea vs Luton Town
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English League Cup Second Round
Thursday 27th August 2026 - Kick Off 7:30pm
Chelsea
Some of the defensive performances were a cause for concern, but the attacking potential of Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro was clear for all to see as Chelsea began the Xabi Alonso era with a hard-fought 2-3 win at Craven Cottage on Monday night. Some will be wondering if Chelsea are going to address some of those defensive problems before the transfer window closes, especially the goalkeeper position, but the board are mainly focused on making sure the squad is trimmed.
That will be worked on behind the scenes and all the manager and the squad can do right now is to prepare for this League Cup tie ahead of another Premier League game on Sunday. Both are to be played at Stamford Bridge and Chelsea fans will see the League Cup as a genuine trophy to be targeted without European Football to crowd the schedule. Over the last nine seasons, Chelsea have reached the Semi Final of the League Cup twice and been Runners Up three times, although The Blues have not won this competition since 2018.
Chelsea looked very sharp in attacking areas in beating Fulham on Monday, while they had improved in pre-season as the games added up. The side did end last season with a single win from the last 5 games played in all competitions, which meant missing out on European Football, but Chelsea reached the League Cup Semi Final.
Wesley Fofana is suspended, while both Marco Palestra and Moises Caicedo are doubts. The likes of Pedro Neto, Estevao and Danny Welbeck can come into the starting eleven to freshen things up.
Luton Town
The last few years have been a rollercoaster ride for Luton Town fans as a then established Championship club improved year upon year to eventually earn promotion to the Premier League in 2023. Relegation felt like it was always an inevitability at that level, but consecutive relegations and then failing to finish in the top six in the League One standings last season have hurt the progress being made.
Jack Wilshere took over as manager in October 2025 as Luton Town struggled and he has turned around the form of the team to such an extent that they entered this season as one of the favourites for promotion back into the second tier of English Football. Four points have been picked up in League One this season to maintain the momentum, and Luton Town have nothing to lose when travelling to West London in the League Cup Second Round.
Luton Town opened the season with consecutive wins before the 2-2 home draw with Notts County this past weekend and they are now unbeaten in 15 games in all competitions. The Hatters have scored at least three goals in winning away games at Gillingham and Reading and they have won 6 of the last 8 away games in all competitions, while Luton Town are also unbeaten in 9 on their travels.
There is no doubt that League One will be the priority for Jack Wilshere and Luton Town this season, but they will want to offer a good account of themselves at Stamford Bridge.
Head to Head
Chelsea scored three goals in both Premier League games against Luton Town in the 2023/24 season and won both fixtures.
The Blues have won the last 3 home fixtures played against Luton Town, but those were played between August 1991 and August 2023.
Prediction
Jack Wilshere will know all about playing at Stamford Bridge from his time with Arsenal, but guiding a League One club to success at this ground would mean overseeing a big upset.
His time with Luton Town has been successful, although Wilshere knows he will be judged at the end of this season and whether he can take the club back into the Championship.
Fixtures against Mansfield Town and Stockport County over the next six days are the priority, although the Luton Town players will want to maintain early season momentum.
Chelsea are likely to make a few changes after the win at Craven Cottage on Monday, but Xabi Alonso will be aware of the importance of domestic Cup runs. That is especially the case in a season without any European commitments and Chelsea can bring in plenty of quality from a bloated squad.
It should be enough to give the home team the edge and they can win by a couple of goals on the night before both of these clubs turn attention back to League matters.
The Pick :
Chelsea 3-0 Luton Town
