The 7 players set to miss Luton Town v Stoke City | OneFootball

The Hatters host the Potters on Tuesday evening

Luton Town and Stoke City are both in real need of three points as they meet at Kenilworth Road in a bottom-half Championship clash on Tuesday night.

The Hatters are facing an uncertain short-term future regarding boss Rob Edwards, with their return to the second-tier not going as planned so far, and the 41-year-old having overseen a recent run of just two wins in their last nine games.

Stoke are in a similar predicament form-wise, with no wins in their previous five outings, and two losses on the spin to Burnley and Sunderland as they make the long trip south on Tuesday.

The Potters sit just two points and three places above their hosts in 15th position as it stands, so both teams are in clear need of a win to get themselves back on track.

With that in mind, Football League World have identified the seven players that are set to miss Luton Town vs Stoke City.

Teden Mengi

Teden Mengi has been a stalwart at the back for Luton in both the Premier League and the Championship in recent years, so is set to be a huge miss after it was confirmed over the weekend that he had recently undergone surgery on a knee problem.

According to boss Edwards, the 22-year-old is set to be out for "a number of months" from now, after he had initially put off having the operation on his knee in the summer following picking up the injury in May, and he took to Instagram to explain his decision on Saturday.

Shandon Baptiste

Similarly to Mengi, Baptiste was also absent from Luton's 1-1 draw with Swansea on Saturday, and looks unlikely to return so soon for the game against Stoke considering Edwards' quotes from the pre-match press conference.

Edwards revealed prior to Saturday that the Hatters had "lost a couple (of players) through the week," and dubbed the injuries as "freakish," which given Baptiste's absence a day after, insinuates that he could be out for an extended period.

Reuell Walters

Summer signing Reuell Walters has proven to be a very versatile player upon his arrival at Luton, but has not figured for over two months now after breaking his foot following the 2-0 defeat at Sheffield United in October.

19-year-old Walters is facing a "significant amount of time" out injured, and his return to action has not yet been given a time-frame.

Alfie Doughty

Left-wing-back Alfie Doughty looks unlikely to be able to face his former employers on Tuesday night as he continues to recover from an ankle injury sustained in the Hatters' win against Cardiff City early last month.

Doughty played 16 times for Stoke between 2021 and 2022, but has not featured in any of Luton's last five games, so the visit of his old club looks to have come too soon for him to make a return just yet.

Reece Burke

Reece Burke has suffered a number of injuries throughout his career, and has been stuck on the sidelines with a quad issue in recent weeks after being forced off in Luton's defeat to Leeds United last month.

The centre-back missed the start of the season through injury, then was injured for a period of games in October, before his return for just two games against Hull City and Leeds, and looks likely to continue to be out in midweek.

Liam Walsh

Liam Walsh's summer move to Kenilworth Road from Swansea City has not gone as planned so far, with just three league starts when he has been fit, and now a hamstring injury that has kept him out for the last three games.

The exact time of the 27-year-old's return is unclear, but he does look likely to miss out against Stoke after not even making the matchday squad last time out against his former club.

Ben Pearson

Ben Pearson's last Stoke appearance came back in March, as he went off with a hamstring injury, and then did not feature in the final eight games of last season before it was announced that he was set to undergo surgery in the off-season and miss the start of this campaign.

The 29-year-old has remained sidelined ever since, and suffered a setback in his recovery a few months ago, but is said to be making "positive steps in his rehabilitation," yet the time frame for his return is still uncertain.