Luton Town play host to Derby County on Saturday afternoon looking to build on an outstanding start to the season in the Championship and EFL Cup.
However, the same cannot be said of the Rams, who are yet to register a win from open play in their three matches ahead of their trip to Kenilworth Road.
Match preview
© Reuters
Eyebrows were raised when Nathan Jones was given the opportunity to return to Luton Town in May, less than 18 months after he had left the Hatters to endure a disastrous spell at Stoke City.
However, as it stands, the appointment by the Luton board looks inspired, with the Welshman recording seven wins and four draws from his first 12 matches in charge.
Survival in the Championship has been followed by reaching the third round of the EFL Cup, setting up a glamorous tie at home to Manchester United next week.
That said, full focus will be on trying to build on a potentially-crucial 1-0 success last weekend at Barnsley, another team who miraculously avoided the drop last season.
James Collins has been the star of the show thus far, netting each of his four goals in all competitions during the final quarter.
While Luton are on an upward trajectory, their next opponents Derby are at risk of stagnating after a less-than-inspiring start to the season.
In three home matches against Barrow, Reading and Preston North End, they have netted just one goal through youngster Jason Knight.
Although Cocu was quick to blame decisions made by the officials in their most recent encounter, there has been no cutting edge in the final third.
Wayne Rooney is taking his time to reach full match sharpness, and that has only highlighted how much this side may have to rely on the England legend's contribution going forward.
Luton Town Championship form: W
Luton Town form (all competitions): WWW
Derby County Championship form: L
Derby County form (all competitions): DLL
Team News
© Reuters
Cocu will be forced into at least one change after Mike te Wierik received a red card in the EFL Cup.
Rooney is in line to drop back into midfield, allowing for Jack Marriott to return down the middle with Martyn Waghorn still out injured.
Winger Kamil Jozwiak is in contention for a starting role after arriving at Pride Park earlier this week.
Barring any late fitness issues, Jones will likely revert to the side which began the game at Barnsley.
Having dropped down to the substitutes' bench for the EFL Cup tie with Reading, the likes of Martin Cranie, Harry Cornick and Collins should all return to the team.
Jones has a decision to make over when to reintroduce Tom Lockyer to the middle of the defence for Championship fixtures.
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Sluga; Cranie, Pearson, Bradley, Norrington-Davies; Berry, Mpanzu, Rea; Cornick, Collins, Lee
Derby County possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Wisdom, Davies, Clarke, Forsyth; Rooney, Bird; Whittaker, Sibley, Knight; Marriott
We say: Luton Town 2-1 Derby County
Jones will be desperate for his side to maintain the momentum which has been generated in recent weeks, and we expect them to do just that. Derby are struggling to get anything going right row, with a game against opponents who will relish their underdogs tag coming at completely the wrong time.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:dataData Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Derby County win with a probability of 41.25%. A win for Luton Town had a probability of 32.83% and a draw had a probability of 25.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a Derby County win was 0-1 with a probability of 9.93%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.75%) and 0-2 (7.06%). The likeliest Luton Town win was 1-0 (8.66%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.31%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with a 7.6% likelihood.
