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• Luton Town 1-1 Everton: Hatters squander opportunity to climb out of relegation zone

  Luton Town missed an inviting chance to escape the Premier League's bottom three after Friday's hard-fought 1-1 draw with Everton at Kenilworth Road.

  Rob Edwards' side would have leapfrogged 17th-placed Nottingham Forest – who visit Sheffield United on Saturday – with a victory, but were instead left level on points with Nuno Espirito Santo's team.

  The fit-again Elijah Adebayo cancelled out Dominic Calvert-Lewin's 24th-minute penalty in an entertaining first half, though neither side could find a winner in an end-to-end second period.

  Despite an encouraging performance, Luton – who almost snatched a late victory – stay 18th and below Forest on goal difference, while Everton remain 15th in the table.

  A tense opening offered few opportunities as Dwight McNeil's left-wing cross deflected off Teden Mengi and forced Thomas Kaminski into a smart reflex stop, but Everton hit the front soon after.

  VAR David Coote recommended a pitch-side review before referee Tim Robinson awarded a penalty for a needless Mengi pull on Jarrad Branthwaite's shirt from McNeil's corner, with Calvert-Lewin squeezing his spot-kick under Kaminski.

  Yet Luton responded after 31 minutes when Adebayo ushered Ashley Young out of the way from Albert Sambi Lokonga's hanging delivery before swivelling to finish into the bottom-left corner.

  Clear-cut chances remained sparse before Carlton Morris' looping header from Alfie Doughty's pinpoint back-post delivery was headed off the line by Ben Godfrey on the stroke of half-time.

  Gabriel Osho curled a bending effort narrowly wide of Jordan Pickford's left-hand post shortly after the interval, while former Toffee Ross Barkley headed over from Tahith Chong's left-wing centre.

  Jack Harrison's deflected effort almost caught Luton off-guard, though, as Kaminski produced an eye-catching stop before denying a thumping Calvert-Lewin header.

  Luton laid siege to Everton's area in stoppage time, but the Toffees clung on, Pickford turning Luke Berry's header wide before a heroic Branthwaite block denied Andros Townsend a last-gasp winner against his former club. 

  Luton entertain without victory

  Prior to Friday's match, Luton had won just one of their last 14 Premier League games (three draws, 10 defeats), with no side picking up fewer points than the Hatters since the start of this run (six).

  Edwards' winless misery was further compounded when Mengi's mindless foul on Branthwaite afforded Everton their opener, yet Luton responded to keep their hopes of Premier League safety alive and cement their status among the competition's entertainers.

  Luton have both scored and conceded in 29 of their 36 Premier League games this season, a joint-record by any side in a single campaign in the competition, along with Swindon Town in 1993-94 and Southampton in 1994-95.

  Everton not resting on laurels

  Everton could have been forgiven for letting this game pass them by, having already secured their top-flight status with three straight victories over Forest, Liverpool and Brentford.

  Yet the Toffees started well and were good value for their lead as Calvert-Lewin scored his fourth goal in his last five Premier League appearances, as many as he managed in his previous 38.

  Some disappointing defending for Adebayo's leveller may frustrate Sean Dyche, but his side still made it four games unbeaten since their 6-0 hammering at Chelsea in the middle of April.

• Pochettino laments 'stupid rumours' over future as Chelsea speculation persists

  Mauricio Pochettino blasted "stupid rumours" as speculation continues over his future at Chelsea.

  Pochettino oversaw a 2-0 win over former employers Tottenham on Thursday, becoming the first manager to complete a Premier League double after previously managing them in the competition.

  Yet a longer-term view on the plans under Pochettino remain unclear, with reports linking Julian Nagelsmann, Hansi Flick and Roberto De Zerbi to Stamford Bridge should the Chelsea manager be moved on.

  That comes after another heavy-spending season under the Todd Boehly-led ownership at Chelsea, who splashed once more on the likes of Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Christopher Nkunku.

  Cole Palmer, Axel Disasi and Nicolas Jackson were among the other arrivals amid another chaotic transfer window in west London, with Pochettino battling injury issues and managing a large squad.

  Whether Chelsea pull the trigger for another manager may depend on how the Blues finish the season, with Pochettino's side eighth but just three points behind sixth-placed Manchester United.

  A place in Europe could be the decisive factor, though Pochettino vented his frustration at the situation in an honest assessment of the media reports questioning his job safety.

  "I wanted to say that it is enough with this type of rumours, that if I have one year more [under] contract here and no one says nothing [to me], [I] suppose I'm going to be here," Pochettino said.

  "Only if then, the season finishes and someone says to me 'ciao'... Because we don't know at the moment.

  "I suppose that I have one more year contract and that I am going to be here. Enough about the stupid rumours.

  "You need to ask the club if they want me to keep going or not, not to write things that have no sense."

  Pochettino has not been distracted by those rumours, though, with Chelsea winning eight of their last 10 home Premier League games (D1 L1), after managing just one win from the 14 before that (D7 L6).

  The Blues will hope to continue that imperious run of form when they host London rivals West Ham on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.

• Klopp says Salah spat a 'non-story', does not expect forward to push for move

  Jurgen Klopp says his bust-up with Mohamed Salah has been resolved and does not believe the Liverpool forward will push to follow him through the exit door at the end of the season.

  Klopp and Salah became embroiled in a heated confrontation on the sidelines during Liverpool's 2-2 draw with West Ham last week, as the out-of-form Egyptian waited to come on as a substitute.

  The Reds boss played down the incident in his post-match press conference but Salah did the opposite in the mixed zone, telling reporters: "If I speak, there will be fire."

  However, Klopp reiterated on Friday that he considers the matter closed, saying: "It is completely resolved. It is no problem.  

  "If we didn't know each other for that long I don't know how we would deal with it, but we've known each other for that long and we respect each other. 

  "I think we have the right to deal with these things completely independent of any expectations from the outside. It is a non-story. In general, everyone is in the best possible place.

  "If we win the games and score loads of goals, then the situation would not have been exactly like that because Mo would not have been on the bench in the first place."

  Last week's incident led to renewed speculation regarding Salah's future at Anfield, with the Egyptian preparing to enter the final 12 months of his contract with the Reds.

  Salah, who was the subject of a £150million bid from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad last year, has scored 17 Premier League goals this season but only three of those have come since New Year's Day.

  Before going to the Africa Cup of Nations – where he suffered a hamstring injury – Salah boasted a shot conversion rate of 21.54 per cent in the Premier League for 2023-24, netting with 14 of his 65 attempts. Since returning, he has only converted three of 35 (8.57 per cent).

  While Salah's long-term future is none of Klopp's concern, he does not see any signs of the Egypt star pushing for a move.

  "You all have to get used to the fact that is not my subject," Klopp added. "Mo, as a player, is incredible and I don't think I should speak about that. Other people will decide that, especially Mo.

  "I don't have any signs it will be like that. I just try to prepare the basis for the future."

  Liverpool host Tottenham on Sunday, with the Premier League title now surely beyond them as they trail Arsenal by five points and Manchester City – who have a game in hand – by four.