'Seems bonkers. A gift' - high-profile podcasters in agreement as Portsmouth head to Luton in Championship
Pompey are being hugely underestimated ahead of their Championship trip to Luton Town today.
That’s the verdict of two high-profile podcasters, who find it hard to believe that the rock-bottom Hatters are heading into the Kenilworth Road game as ‘favourites’.
Both the Second Tier Podcast’s Ryan Dilks and Not The Top 20 Podcast’s George Elek are in agreement that the in-form Blues - who head into the match 17th and looking for a season-best fourth win in a row - have the minerals to inflict even more pain on Matt Bloomfield’s struggling side.
And their confidence is backed up by Luton’s recent stats as they sit five points from Championship safety - without a win in 12 Championship appearances; nine league defeats in those dozen fixtures; three defeats in five at home; and with just five goals scored since the turn of the year.
Of course, Pompey boss John Mousinho will be taking nothing for granted heading into the game - especially when the Blues are facing yet another injury crisis.
Yet, what he’s done with Pompey in recent months and the level he has the Blues performing now, has clearly impressed not only the Fratton faithful and those with close ties to the Blues - but also those looking in from far.
Here’s what both Dilks and Elek said on their respective shows heading into today’s fixture (3pm).
Ryan Dilks - Second Tier Podcast
‘Would anyone confidently be backing Luton to get a result right now? I was stunned that the odds are as short as they are for this one. Luton were slightly above evens last time I checked to win this one, which seems bonkers for a side who have won just three points from their last 12 games. They're bottom of the table for a reason.
‘Matt Bloomfield has had next to no impact since coming in and if they are to stay up, they probably have to be looking at Portsmouth at home as a must-win game. But almost some of Luton's luck this season, they're facing Portsmouth at probably the worst possible time because Pompey are in the midst of their best run of form of the season.
‘Three wins on the bounce and it's just about getting to the stage where they're pretty much safe. Not long ago they were looking like one of the prime candidates. Now you'd say they're just about there, nine points clear of the bottom three.
‘But John Mousinho will still want to make sure they get it over the line and they're going to a side who are winless in five at home and you're coming off the back of your best form of the season.
‘So this is a great chance for Pompey to take one small step towards safety, one giant leap to piling the misery on Luton Town. So I'm backing a win for John Mousinho's boys this weekend.’
George Elek - Not the top 20m Podcast
‘Pompey at 5-2 away at Luton just seems like a bit of a gift.
‘Now we know that Pompey have had their struggles away from home for quite a lot this season. They finally got their first away win at Oxford last time out. They weren't at their best that day but they were still good enough to get past an Oxford side whose home form still stacks up relatively well apart from that performance against Pompey.
‘Pompey (currently) are a team who are massively upwardly mobile, who have, in my mind, one of the best players in the whole division right now in Josh Murphy, (are) playing incredibly well, and are up against Luton's side who look completely devoid of confidence, completely devoid of quality.
‘Matt Bloomfield has done absolutely nothing to them. I'm a little bit put off by how well they started the game against Sheffield United in their previous home game before the Argyle game. We then saw them against Plymouth Argyle, be the better team, but not make that dominance count.
‘Yeah, it's just a pure price thing. I wouldn't be rushing to back Pompey at a shorter price necessarily. But it's interesting to note that Portsmouth went off about 2-1 at Oxford and yet they're kind of 5-2 away at Luton.
‘And as poor as Oxford have been recently, I definitely wouldn't have Luton in terms of a significant advantage over Oxford in terms of the prices, but we're still getting a bigger price here.
‘Pompey, I think, are being written off a bit early. And I think we may have seen the end of their troubles on the road, especially, you know, we can date that back previously to the Oxford game as well with their good performance at Bramall Lane. So, yeah, 5-2 seems like a huge price for Portsmouth to continue their run in good form and to stick another nail in the coffin of Luton as they really flounder in terms of trying to stay in this league.’
For your next Pompey read: Luton Town v Portsmouth team news: 14 out and 7 doubts