Man City 2-0 Luton Town – Premier League: Live score, team news and updates as Mateo Kovacic grabs a second for Pep Guardiola’s Treble chasers

Damsgaard looks like he has got his reward for his efforts on the first goal, with Mbeumo’s smart free kick finding the Dane on the edge of the box.

It’s a really smart finish, but a VAR check says that Oli McBurnie has been fouled. Mike Dean is fuming on Soccer Saturday, but no goal.

Luton hit the bar!

Maybe it isn’t game over!

Onyedima carries a rare Luton break and feeds substitute Woodrow. He, to everyone’s surprise, hits it first time and it rockets off the woodwork!

You never know…

Forest’s lead lasts mere minutes and it’s more frustration for the hosts.

Cunha’s return has been so, so welcomed. He strikes again and we are all square.

And that is game, set and match.

The chances are dcoming thick and fast now, way quicker than I can type, but it’s a strike that will have had an xG of about 0.05 that brings City’s second.

Teed up by Alvarez, Kovacic unleashes a pile driver and it’s very, very good.

Brething space.

GOAL! Brentford score now!

Damsgaard does well down the right and he commits to his run, which earns him the strike here.

A one-two with Mbeumo sees the Danishman pick the ball back up and and via a deflection from Oliver Arblaster it’s in!

Gibbs-White is involved again and breaks for the hosts, stopped by Doherty, but he and Bueno clash in the aftermath and Danilo mops up.

Gratefully, he slots past Sa and wheels away in celebration.

That will put them above Everton as it stands.

GOAL! Forest are ahead against Wolves and it’s nothing less than they deserve.

Danilo with the strike.

Kevin De Bruyne slices a volley straight into the arms of Kaminski. Niot his afternoon so far.

A couple of chances elsehwhere, with David Datro Fofana wasting another good chance for Burnley while Mathias Jorgensen has had a goal ruled out for offside for Brentford.

Forest are looking really impressive here and will be frustrated not to be ahead.

Tom Collomosse said earlier on that Morgan Gibbs-White would be well up for it against his old side. He absolutely is and showed that with his goal.

Nunes is involved again, with Ederson’s kick going all the way through and the midfielder is through, but he hits the deck randomly.

Haaland was there for a tap in. Not yet.

This is really random, but my team Gillingham are 1-0 up against Barrow and George Ray has been sent off for genuinely the worst tackle I have ever seen. Check it out if you can.

Anyway, we’re back underway in the Premier League. More goals please, football Gods.

Dominic Hogan, Mail Sport, at the Gtech Community Stadium:

Half-time at the Gtech Community Stadium and there is nothing to separate these two. It’s hardly been a thriller here, as the scoreline probably suggests.

Ben Brereton Diaz had a chance one-on-one inside the first 10 minutes that he really should have put away, and the same can be said for Neal Maupay in the 37th, but neither side has been able to produce a goal to liven up what has been a quite tense game.

Still 45 minutes to come, and hopefully with it a goal or two, but you can sense a growing frustration from both fanbases in the stands at the end of a first half that has rather failed to come alive.

So not too many goals around the groudn then. A little bit disappointing to be honest. A round-up of the scores below:

• Brentford 0-0 Sheffield United
• Burnley 0-0 Brighton
• Man City 1-0 Luton
• Nottingham Forest 1-1 Wolves

Let’s hope for more in the second half.

I make that half time in all four games.

City lead 1-0 at the Etihad but won’t be too happy. They will want more in the second half.

Erling Haaland ciuts a frustrated figure as he walks off. Think of the points, Erling.

The goal is straight from a corner. It’s really sloppy from Wolves, with the cross coming in and Gibbs-White heading home.

In all honesty, it’s not the best of headers. Sa could maybe do better, but Forest and Gibbs-White will not care. He laps it up against his old side. The away end not besrt pleased.

And just like that, we are all square again in Nottingham.

It’s Morgan Gibbs-White, too, against his former side.

Back in Manchester, City are well on top but it remains the one.

The makeshift defence is standing firm has been offered up the other end. Plenty of crosses going in from City, but nothing to show for the efforts yet bar that early own goal.

Kevin De Bruyne has been booked.

His first start in nine weeks after injury and Matheus Cunha has announced his return in fine fashion.

The foward picks the ball up in his own half and breaks. No sign of any injury hangover, and he cuts inside Omibamedele and Williams to fire a fantastic finish past Sels.

Wolves lead.

GOAL! HE IS BACK!

A pretty sensational miss in the capital.

It’s been a pretty dire state of affairs so far but Neal Maupay has just has the best chance.

The Premier League’s biggest troll is one-on-one after a bit of sloppy play from Ahmedhodzic but he rolls the chance wide.

That may have woken the crowd up, however.

Nathan Salt, Mail Sport, at the Etihad:

One of my observations here is that City are desperate for Erling Haaland to score. They keep feeding him even when he’s caught in traffic. Clearly want to build up some confidence ahead of Real Madrid on Wednesday.

Another great chance for Nunes but this time he is denied by the post!

The second is surely just a matter of moments away.

Luton go up the other end and win a corner but it comes to nothing.

A golden opportuntiy for Wolves!

Forest try and play out but Yates is sloppy. Murillo does well to recover by Sarabia has to score, but, like the Bruun Larson, shoots wide.

A huge let-off for Nuno’s side.

Haaland pokes one over for City at the far post, Tough chance at full stretch.

Luton, meanwhile, have had their own chance but it goes amiss and we are back into the routine of City possession. Just the one so far, though.

There’s an early change for Brighton at Burnley and Pervis Estupinan’s horrid season continues as he is forced off through injury. Igor Julio comes on.

A good chance for Burnley, who have been awful at home this season, goes amiss, with Jacob Bruun Larsen shooting wide from just yards out.

Nathan Salt, Mail Sport, at the Etihad:

Rico Lewis really is a joy to watch. He’s starting at right back for City today but the way he glides past players and into more attacking areas is so, so good (pardon sounding like Pep for a second). Luton have definitely calmed down after that early blow but they still need to find a way to test Ederson.

City are raising awareness today for foodbanks across Manchester. The warmed up in shirts to show their support and there are banners around the ground too.

Matheus Nunes should make it 2-0, but hs effort from the edge of the box is straight at Kaminski.

Ryan Yates looks like he’s still angry from that apparent punch from James Maddison last week.

He’s had a couple of shots in anger already, the latest straight at Sa after he was teed up by Hudson-Odoi.

No Anthony Elanga today, which is a blow for the hosts. But they are on top so far.

Gvardiol forces a save from Kaminski before De Bruyne fires over.

Elsewhere, Burnley are on top early at Turf Moor, as are Forest in Nottingham and Sheffield United in the capital.

Luton would be extremely brave to come out swinging and they have not done that. I’m no football manager, but stay in the game as long as possible would be the plan if I had to guess.

Three shots already for City, 62 per cent possession.

Nathan Salt, Mail Sport, at the Etihad:

OK, so this is going to be a long afternoon for Luton, sorry Hatters fans. Daiki Hashioka is just smashed in the face by the ball and it rifles into the net. We’ve all been there when you take one plush in the face. That’s stinging for a good five minutes at least.

Haaland is through one-on-one, and Kamionski saves. The ball comes out to Doku, whose effort is blocked, and it’s backout to Haaland.

He goes for the spectacular, the effort is going wide, but it hits Hashioka in the face and goes into the back of the net.

Game over?

That’s a Haaland assist, for FPL players.

It’s as you’d expect early on at the Etihad. GOAL! THAT DID NOT TAKE LONG!

Here we go then!

The first whistles around the country sound and we are underway in the four 3pm kick-offs in the Premier League this afternoon.

Tom Collomosse, Mail Sport, at the City Ground:

Morgan Gibbs-White is sure to get a hot reception from the travelling fans today. The playmaker was sold by Wolves to Forest for £25million two years ago and has turned up his celebrations to 11 when facing his former club. Expect more of the same if he scores here.

It wouldn’t be close to a crisis for a normal player, but Erling Haaland is not a normal player.

Three goals in his last eight games, I make it. He has come under criticism for his performances in recent times, and I think it is undoubtedly his biggest blip since he joined City.

Today would be a great time to change that. Earlier this season, he scored five against Luton. Not bad.

Rob Edwards, smiley as ever, is ready to go, speaking to Sky Sports.

Centre-back issue is an understatement. It hasn’t damaged the preparations too much, we still feel like we have good a got plan. We just need to do it against arguably the best team in the world. Let’s go.

Lee Hendrie on Sky Sports:

When you are title winners and have the squad Pep Guardiola has, they are hitting great form. 26 unbeaten in all competitions and at home they are relentless. He gets the best out of his side in the run-in.

It is ever so exciting. They can go top today and I believe they can keep going. The changes bring even more quality and I think they will continue on and win the title.

A champions’ welcome for City ahead of today’s match.

Kick-off is, what, just over half an hour away.

I don’t want to disrespect Luton but I feel like it’s a matter of how many today. I’ve gone with five in my predictions.

And the final game:

I want Ivan to start and score goals. He is a beast and plays through everything. The injury is not as good as we hoped for; he’s on the bench and fine for that.

I want him available for as many minutes as possible between now and the end of the season.

Elsewhere, Ivan Toney is on the bench again…

Tom Collomosse, Mail Sport, at the City Ground:

First start for Gio Reyna in a Forest shirt. He was signed on loan in January but has had little chance to make an impression. With Anthony Elanga absent, there can be no better time for the USA playmaker to deliver.

Here’s how Nuno Espirito Santo and Gary O’Neil have lined their teams up today:

Forest: Sels, Williams, Omobamidele, Murillo, Aina, Danilo, Reyna, Yates, Hudson-Odoi, Gibbs-White, Wood.

Wolves: Sa, Semedo, S Bueno, Kilman, Toti, Doherty, Gomes, M Lemina, Doyle, Sarabia, Cunha.

No Elanga for Forest, no Ait Nouri for Wolves.

Escuse the awful Forest graphic embed.

So it’s Ortega, Stones, Rodri, Bernardo, Foden and Grealish who drop out for City from the Madrid draw, replaced by Ederson, Lewis, Dias, Nunes, Alvarez and Doku.

Burke makes it for Luton to help the patched-up defence.

Nathan Salt, Mail Sport, at the Etihad:

Rodri said in the wake of the draw away to Real Madrid that he needed a rest and Pep Guardiola has given it to him today as he’s one of the players to drop to the bench. Phil Foden is another among the subs.

Imagine making six changes and you’ve still got the likes of Haaland, De Bruyne, Alvarez, Doku and more in the team. Great depth.

Kaminski, Onyedinma, Burko, Hashioka, Doughty, Berry, Barkley, Clark, Townsend, Chong, Morris.

Subs: Shea, Krul, Woodrow, Mpanzu, Johnson, Harris, Chigozie, Nelson, Piesold.

Ederson, Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Nunes, De Bruyne, Alvarez, Doku, Haaland.

Subs: Ortega, Walker, Ake, Grealish, Rodri, Bernardo, Gomez, Foden, Bobb.

Following a knock in midweek and a run of games that has seen a sensational run of form, there has been a late change to the City line-up and Phil Foden does not start for the hosts.

I mentioned Luton’s injury crisis in defence but allow me to outline just how bad it is.

Gabriel Osho, Tom Lockyer, Reece Burke, Mads Andersen, Amarai Bell, Teden Mengi, Dan Potts.

What do those seven players have in common? They are all centre backs and they are all injured.

Rob Edwards has to earn his money to pick his defence today.

Sorry to plug this again, but Newcastle are running absolutely riot against Tottenham, who are all over the place.

Alexander Isak has two, Anthony Gordon has one, Son Heung-min has just been hooked and it should be about 8-0.

Follow it below if you’d like to!

Nathan Salt, Mail Sport, at the Etihad:

There’s a really nice interview in the matchday programme today with Ruben Dias where he talks about catching himself getting carried away looking at the remaining fixtures.

It’s easy to get distracted when the likes of Real Madrid are coming here in a few days time but Luton have shown time and again that they don’t go away quietly. With Arsenal and Liverpool both not playing until tomorrow, City have to lay down a gauntlet in this title race today… and not get preoccupied with the blockbuster games to come.

A real good piece from our City correspondent Jack Gaughan here, with Pep Guardiola revealing that he’s having his ‘toughest season in years’.

On the back of winning the Treble, the challenge is always staying on top and though another Treble can be won again this season, it’s not been as plain sailing.

They are currently third in the table in a three-horse title race and face a challenge against Real Madrid next week in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.

Win that, and Arsenal or Bayern Munich await.

Read more below on that. A great read if I do say so myself.

Elsewhere, Sheffield United and Burnley are both in action and must win if they are to stand any chance at all of staying in the Premier League this season.

United are nine points adrift and Burnley six. They can technically both stay up, but it admittedly just feels like a matter of time.

Brentford are only four points clear of the drop but have a good run in, and a win today would help their cause.

Forest, meanwhile, are out the relegation zone on goal difference so their match against Wolves is a big one too.

Today may provide a good opportuntiy for Pep Guardiola to rest players, with a City win surely all but guaranteed.

Rodri may sit out, with the midfielder declairng after the Real Madrid game in the week that he is in need of a rest and his manager saying he will get one if he wants one. Where’s Kalvin Phillips when you need him?

Elsewhere, we have been reliably informed that Erling Haaland starts, but he may be withdrawn early if the damage is done.

We will have the team sheet in around 40 mintues.

Onto today then, and Manchester City are the first of the three tite-chasing sides to play this weekend.

With all due respect to Luton, they couldn’t really ask for a better game. The Hatters are not only fighting relegation, but have an injury crisis and a half in defence.

The likes of Erling Haaland and Phil Foden will be licking their lips. Win, and the champions will go to the top of the table, at least temporarily.

Elsewhere today, Manchester United will travel to Bournemouth later, but Newcastle versus Tottenham is well underway in the north east with the home side just scoring two quick goals to go 2-0 up.

My colleague Harry Bamforth is covering that one, so click below if you want to follow that one live.

Good afternoon one and all and welcome to Mail Sport’s live coverage of the 3pm kick offs in the Premier League, featuring Manchester City versus Luton.

We have four games for you this afternoon including the champions, with Brentford vs Sheffield United, Burnley vs Brighton and Nottingham Forest vs Wolves also taking place.

It’s an afternoon that will shape the table at both ends of the table, so strap in and stick with us!