Teemu Pukki’s hefty early hit was his eighth goal in his last seven games and his ninth goal was soon to follow
Teemu Pukki scored his 19th and 20th goals of the season as runaway leaders Norwich City stylishly sacked Luton Town for a seventh straight win.
The Canaries, who regained their 10-point lead after Watford’s win over Nottingham Forest at midday kick-off, were shocked early when a shot from James Collins hit the post.
But the attacking talents of Pukki, Todd Cantwell and Emi Buendia were too hot for a Hatters team to play with confidence after two wins.
Pukki shattered the opener from Cantwell’s pass and the formidable striker scored the 2-0 just before the break. He turned the ball on the track at the far post for the ninth time in his last seven games home.
Cantwell’s low 18-yard hit sealed a deserved break win against a Luton team who were still 12 points off third place in the table Rotherham United after postponing their game against Brentford.
The Hatters, who wanted to win three league games in a row in the same season for the first time since February 2019 in the first division, got almost the perfect start, but Collins couldn’t miss a shot from Tom Ince.
From that moment on, the hosts took control and a fourth straight win for Luton against elected champions Norwich never seemed likely.
The outstanding Pukki could easily have scored four goals during the break, with goalkeeper Simon Sluga making good stops 1-0 and 2-0, the second to fend off an outrageous attempt with the rear wheel.
Pukki’s first goal was scored classically. Cantwell ran onto Lukas Rupp’s pass and played a cute ball with the outside of his foot that enabled the Finn to take his shot home.
The second goal was all about Pukki’s anticipation. The 30-year-old responded cleverly to Buendia’s half-blocked shot.
However, Pukki had to forego a hat trick. The striker failed to convert a double into a triple for the sixth time this season, despite Norwich continuing to dominate after the break.
Cantwell caught a volley just before packing the points when he cut from the left in and found the corner of the net with an accurate hit.
Reaction – Norwich “still has a lot to do”
Daniel Farke, Norwich City Manager: “I have to congratulate my players on another excellent performance. It was probably even better than that.” 1-0 win over Brentford on Wednesday.
“They put a lot of energy into this game, both physically and mentally, but only three days later they were able to produce again. That is exactly what the winners do.”
“They want it so badly and they showed it. All the players, whether they played 90 minutes or one minute, were dedicated and focused and it was another good win.
“It got us 76 points but we need two more wins to get over 80 and five wins to go over 90. So there is still a lot to do.”
Luton boss Nathan Jones: “When you play against a team like Norwich you have to take your chances and we didn’t.”
“But we were dealing with a very good team. The best team in the league.”
“Norwich Manchester City are at that level – it’s difficult to score against them and they score a lot of goals themselves. So it has always been difficult.”
“We’re not at their level. It’s not negative, it’s just realistic. The players put in a shift, they stuck to it and didn’t throw in the towel, but there is no way I can complain about the result.”
Constellations
Norwich
formation 4-2-3-1
1Krul
2Aarons5Hanley34Gibson30thGiannoulis
20thSkipp23McLean
17thGood day7thRupp14thCantwell
22ndgoat
- 1Krul
- 2Aarons
- 5Hanley
- 34Gibson
- 30thGiannoulis
- 20thSkipp
- 23McLeanReplaced byIdahat the 86 ‘protocol
- 17thGood dayReplaced byDowellat the 82 ‘protocol
- 7thRuppReplaced bySørensenat the 78 ‘protocol
- 14thCantwellReplaced byHernándezat the 78 ‘protocol
- 22ndgoatReplaced byHugillat the 82 ‘protocol
replacement
- 6thCarpenter
- 8thVrancic
- 9Hugill
- 10Dowell
- 19thSørensen
- 25thHernández
- 27Tettey
- 35Idah
- 50Bards
Luton
formation 4-4-1-1
12thservant
2Cranie6thPearson24Naismith3Pots
39Thin4thTunnicliffe22ndDewsbury Hall14thMoncur
8thberry
19thCollins
- 12thservant
- 2Cranie
- 6thPearson
- 24Naismith
- 3Pots
- 39ThinReplaced byCornickat the 61 ‘protocol
- 4thTunnicliffe
- 22ndDewsbury HallReplaced byBreeat the 78 ‘protocol
- 14thMoncurReplaced byMpanzuat the 61 ‘protocol
- 8thberryReplaced byClarkat the 45 ‘protocol
- 19thCollinsReplaced byAdebayoat the 61 ‘protocol
replacement
- 1Shea
- 7thCornick
- 9Hylton
- 17thMpanzu
- 18thClark
- 26thBree
- 27Nombe
- 28Morrell
- 29Adebayo
Live text
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End of the game, Norwich City 3, Luton Town 0.
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The second half ends, Norwich City 3, Luton Town 0.
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Foul by Jacob Sørensen (Norwich City).
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Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu (Luton Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Missed attempt. Jordan Hugill (Norwich City) right footed shot from outside the box misses the top left corner. Prepared by Kieran Dowell.
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Missed attempt. Ryan Tunnicliffe (Luton Town) header from the center of the box is close but missed on the right. Assisted by Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu.
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Missed attempt. Jacob Sørensen’s (Norwich City) header from the center of the box is too high. Assisted by Kieran Dowell with a cross following a corner.
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Substitution, Norwich City. Adam Idah replaces Kenny McLean.
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Corner, Norwich City. The corner was created by James Bree.
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Away from Luton Town. Jordan Clark attempts a pass, but Elijah Adebayo is caught offside.
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Away from Luton Town. James Bree tries a through ball, but Harry Cornick is offside.
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Substitution, Norwich City. Jordan Hugill replaces Teemu Pukki.
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Substitution, Norwich City. Kieran Dowell replaces Emiliano Buendía.
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Foul by Oliver Skipp (Norwich City).
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Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu (Luton Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Substitution, Luton Town. James Bree replaces Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
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Substitution, Norwich City. Onel Hernández replaces Todd Cantwell.
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Substitution, Norwich City. Jacob Sørensen replaces Lukas Rupp.
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Missed attempt. Grant Hanley (Norwich City) right footed shot from the center of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Dimitrios Giannoulis following a corner.
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Missed attempt. Dimitrios Giannoulis (Norwich City) left footed shot from the center of the box goes left after a corner.
