Chelsea’s near £1bn squad faces Luton’s £52m minnows, but poor form leads Blues legend to ask: ‘Is it even a mismatch?’
THE haves v the have-nots. Harrods v Poundland. The big spenders v the bargain basement.
But as the Premier League’s minnows Luton face Chelsea tomorrow for what on the balance sheet is the biggest mismatch in top-flight history, there is another billion-pound question.
Kerry Dixon, who played for both clubs and embodies the spirit of the Hatters’ back-from-the-brink story, joked: “Is it a mismatch with the way Chelsea are at the moment?”
Boss Rob Edwards’ Luton have the lowest squad value in the division by some distance — at £52million.
Meanwhile, the Todd Boehly-owned Blues have spent £954.5m, with add-ons, in the last three transfer windows.
Luton, everyone’s favourites with Sheffield United to go straight back to the Championship, boast a most expensive signing so far this summer of £5m.
That was the astute purchase of left-back Ryan Giles from Wolves.
Chelsea spent 23 TIMES that amount on the £115m British-record signing of Moises Caicedo from Brighton alone.
But after a tricky home draw against Liverpool, a defeat at West Ham has left Chelsea looking vulnerable.
And Dixon, 62, warns write Luton off at your own peril — especially with a bouncing away support following them to Stamford Bridge.
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He said: “No one will take Luton for granted but at the same time Chelsea should win it.
“I want Chelsea but I think it will be close. This game and the disparity highlights one of football’s best-ever fairytales and restores our faith in the game. Luton being in the Premier League is magnificent and Friday will shine a light on that.”
Dixon moved to Stamford Bridge from Reading for £175,000 and went on to become one of Chelsea’s best-loved stars.
He scored 34 goals in the Division Two title-winning campaign of 1983-84 and, in his first top-flight season, shared the Golden Boot with Gary Lineker.
But he left Chelsea in 1992 and did so very reluctantly because he was nine short of the club’s all-time leading scorer at the time, Bobby Tambling.
After a woeful time at Southampton came a rewarding near three-year spell at Luton — including an FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea at Wembley in 1994.
He added: “That was one of the greatest days of my life in football,
“We lost 2-0 but afterwards it seemed the whole ground was singing my name.
“It was most humbling. Chelsea fans made it for that, giving the ovation.”
Two weeks ago the Hatters signed ex-Chelsea star Ross Barkley on a free.
To put the Hatters’ rise and this match in perspective, when the 29-year-old scored his first Premier League goal ten years ago for Everton, Luton had just kicked off their campaign in the National League, losing 1-0 at Southport.
Money often talks but is there ever a home banker when Chelsea are involved?