If there is one thing the Luton Town squad cannot be accused of lacking – ahead of Saturday’s early Kenilworth Road kick-off against Leeds United – it’s experience.
Of course, one man’s ‘experienced’ is another’s ‘past-it’.
And while Jordan Clarke, Marvelous Nakamba, Cauley Woodrow and Kal Naismith are not yet ready for the scrapheap, the elder statesmen of this Luton Town roster have been largely powerless to prevent the fear of successive relegations turn from a nagging concern into a brutal reality staring The Hatters in the face with only six matches remaining.
A make or break six game run starting with the visit of Leeds United.
Daniel Farke’s side face second-bottom Luton in Saturday’s lunchtime fixture.
Victor Moses, the oldest member of Matt Bloomfield’s squad at 34 and perhaps the most underwhelming of this term’s many poor performers, has faced off against the Yorkshire giants only three times across a sprawling career.
A surprising stat, perhaps. But then again – formerly of Chelsea, Liverpool, Fenerbahce and Inter Milan -Moses and Leeds have often operated in very different circles over the years.
Yet, as the veteran winger’s career comes full circle – a man who started in the Championship with Crystal Palace potentially bringing the curtain down a few miles north in Luton – Victor Moses’ fourth and final appearance against Leeds could be about to arrive a colossal 17 years after his first.
That is if Hatters boss Matt Bloomfield opts to break from recent tradition, of course, and re-calls the out-of-favour Moses back into his matchday squad.
Leeds United beat Victor Moses’ Crystal Palace 4-0 in 2008
The year was 2008. The competition was the EFL Cup. Or the Carling Cup, as it was called back then. And Leeds were drawn against a Crystal Palace side containing one of the shiniest young talents in British football.
A fleet-footed teenager still only months into a career which would take him from Bedfordshire to Milan, to Premier League, Europa League, and African Cup of Nations glory.
Then-Palace and future Leeds boss Neil Warnock was convinced enough already to hand a 17-year-old Moses a start at Elland Road that night but it was the far more experienced Matt Lawrence who set the tone for a miserable night in West Yorkshire.
Lawrence, the Eagles skipper, inadvertently played in Jonathan Douglas to open the scoring. Jermaine Beckford headed in a second before Luciano Becchio and Enoch Showumni completed a 4-0 rout and earned Leeds a spot in the Carling Cup third round.
Neil Warnock endured nightmare night at Elland Road
“Quite honestly we couldn’t cope with the front lads. Once the second goal went in, it was disappointing to say the least,” Warnock sighed, albeit not missing the chance to leave a sneaky dig in Leeds’ ribs.
“If you defend like that you’re going to get beat against any level of opposition and I thought the two centre forwards bullied our defenders from start to finish.
“I’m not used to coming to Leeds and losing. I usually enjoy coming here and putting one over on them but they thoroughly deserved it.”
The best part of two decades later, a repeat scoreline would be nothing short of a nightmare scenario for a Luton side clawing desperately at the heels of the safety line. And, conversely, a confidence-boosting, potentially season-defining victory for a Leeds outfit heading south praying that the early kick-off curse does not hammer another nail into their automatic promotion coffin.
While confirming that Illan Meslier will be replaced by Karl Darlow in goal, Farke knows that failing to win for a fifth time in six games will leave the door wide open to third-place Burnley.
On the other side of the coin, watching on helplessly from the sidelines and clearly not a key part of Bloomfield’s blueprint, a 34-year-old Victor Moses might not even be handed the opportunity to achieve what a 17-year-old Victor Moses could not all those seasons back.
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