Kenilworth Road opens

Kenilworth Road, with a capacity for just 10,356 spectators, is now ready to welcome the elite of English football. It is the smallest field in the Premier and also one of the oldest

and curiosities that one can look back on. This Friday, in front of the old man Westham of david moyessecond with seven points, will see the premiere of the recently promoted Town of Luton in front of his humble fans, after several busy weeks of fighting against time to get the remodeling work of this old English stadium ready. His first fight, fight Burnleywhich was scheduled for August 19, had to be postponed, and the days were busy in this small city north of London, known, above all, for its airport and for the manufacture of hats, that’s why their fans know them as the ‘hatters’, who are now living the dream opportunity.

Located in the district of Bury Park, one kilometer west of the center, the field is named after the road that runs through one end. A visit to ‘Kenny’, as they call it

his followers, will be a curiosity in the best league in the world and also a reason for pressure, because of the proximity of the spectators, because of the noise they generate in their small stands and

for some distractions that give an idea of ​​the humility of this club, recently promoted to Premierafter winning the tiebreaker ‘play-off’ match Coventry City et al sunderlands. the hatters

The newcomers coached by Welshman Rob Edwards lost their first two matches and are now just busy trying to defend their lives against the elite, hoping to play to their strengths. The size of your field is one of the main ones. With his help, they chained multiple promotions, from the Conference to the Premier, in nine seasons.

He Town of Luton and the city council had to invest 10 million pounds to renovate this quaint and old stadium, surrounded by rows of terraced Victorian houses, quite

hard to believe. The most important work is the reconstruction of the old grandstand Bobbers Stand and improved lighting, as well as making sure there are 50 camera positions for

television and facilities according to the prestige of Premier. Meanwhile, with the money from the promotion, he has accelerated plans to build the Power Court Stadiumalthough against many followers, who do not want to move from their iconic Kenilworth Road.

Unusual lawn access

The curiosity of visits to the smallest stadium in the Premier is its unusual access through End of Oak Roadwhich will be the little ‘penance’ that the stars of the league have to go through

English, as they will this Friday Lucas Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen or James Ward-Prowse to get on the pitch. A ‘shit entrance’, according to their fans, giving an idea of ​​the atypical conditions offered by the small area of ​​Luton Town, their home since 1905. ‘Keni’ became the field with the smallest capacity in the Premier’s 21-year history.

‘Stronger than ever’. “Stronger than ever”. Graffiti from fans Town of Lutonon the club’s debut in the elite, let us infer the pride felt by the club and the small town

London bedroom for stepping on top of English football, without foreign owners or sponsorship from the betting world. He cooked town were thrashed in their first Premier League match against Brighton (4-1) and on his visit to Stamford Bridge, he lost 3-0 to Chelsea. However, ardent supporters of the lowly ‘hatters’ left

optimistic. In his mind he is just enjoying this season in the highest category of English football for the first time since 1992, his last relegation.

downtown St George’s Square there are still some memories of the historic promotion celebrations, after some painful penalties against Coventry. The rare phenomenon that reflects the Town of Luton it’s a fan-run club that can compete in the most important league in the world, without a big investor behind it. Luton represents a small revolution in football, the

overcoming adversity and working in the shadows, for fidelity in colors. He went through the lower divisions without big signings, relying on youngsters and trying

build a healthy and sustainable club, run by most of its former players.

pelly ruddock Mpanzuto join in cooked 10 years ago, he was its player-symbol. This English midfielder of Congolese descent has lived it all at the club, the good and the bad,

Going to all categories. He is the first footballer to achieve that small feat. Mpanzu He has joked that they will improve on Derby’s record low tally of just 11

points in 2008. But the cooked intend to use Kenilworth Road in his favor. No team will play ‘Keny’ comfortably. Also the coach, Rob Edwards, was forged in the youth and

in the lower categories, he sees its advantages: “If you come here and you’re not in the right frame of mind, you have a bad time. Let’s make the most of it. The fans are close to you

You feel like you have everything and it’s a little scary.”

Now Luton Town will compete and exploit its small strengths: aggressiveness, courage without the ball and the threat of direct football, from the old English roots, but especially,

the discomfort of his old stadium. He will suffer with them tonight, for the first time, a revitalized Westham, champion of the Europe Conference League. They became the standard weapon of the Town of Luton, whose sole purpose was to slow down the comfort and luxury of the Premier with its modesty.