Luton Town: Rob Edwards will be so frustrated by this Elijah Adebayo trend – View
Luton Town’s return to the Championship has been far from plain sailing so far this season, with the Hatters failing to rediscover the winning formula after dropping back down to the second tier and struggling to produce anything like the eye-catching attacking numbers they are going to need.
Rob Edwards’ side have won just two of their nine Championship matches to date, with victories over Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday coming back in September.
Among the issues Town have at the moment is a lack of goals up top, with nine strikes in as many matches highlighting their profligacy when they get into the final third.
Elijah Adebayo’s woes so far this season have been a major cause for concern for all at Kenilworth Road, with the underlying numbers proving the frontman has been pivotal in his side churning out more wins in the current campaign.
Elijah Adebayo’s bad luck in front of goal continues
Adebayo’s form in front of goal has been stop-start during his time as a Luton Town player, but the start to this season could well top the lot.
After notching 16 goals in his first full season with the club, the striker only scored seven as the club earned promotion to the Premier League, before adding another ten to his tally when in the top flight.
But the forward is yet to find the net in any of his nine matches so far this season, and anyone that has watched his displays will know it isn’t for the want of trying.
According to FotMob, the former Walsall man has squandered nine big chances in his appearances in the Championship, which will have gone some way to contributing to his side’s sluggish start to the campaign.
In terms of xG, the attacker has racked up a total of 3.44 without finding the back of the net, which unsurprisingly puts him top of the pile in terms of strikers who are wasting chances in the second tier.
His recent outing against Plymouth Argyle outlined the issues in his season so far, with a number of opportunities gifted to him by the Pilgrims, although he was unable to find the back of the target, or beat Daniel Grimshaw should his shot be goal-bound.
While everything else in his game is still of top standard, the fact that the striker can’t convert a goal for the life of him at the minute is severely hampering his team’s results, even if performances may have suggested they could have earned all three points.
Edwards has continued to issue his confidence in his striker to date, and there is every chance that he can turn his fortune around, but it can only be a matter of time before the Hatters boss loses patience with his number eleven.
How Elijah Adebayo compares to other Championship strikers
Although Adebayo has missed his fair amount of opportunities this season, he doesn’t top the charts regarding big chances going begging, with Norwich City’s Josh Sargent topping that particular metric, with ten big moments missed.
Adebayo is next on the list, while West Brom’s Josh Maja and Vakoun Bayo [pictured] of Watford find themselves among those heading the charts, with seven chances missed apiece.
The reliance of Town on their misfiring striker is also clear to see when looking at the numbers, with Carlton Morris only spurning one golden opportunity this season, given the forward has been out of action since a match-winning brace against Sheffield Wednesday last month.
While Luton’s results have been less than ideal, they can gain heart from the fact that once Adebayo finds his shooting boots, the results will likely start to improve, with all likelihood being that he will go on a hot-streak once he breaks his duck for the season.
