Unai Emery hailed Ollie Watkins as one of the best strikers in Europe after his double helped Aston Villa to a dramatic 3-2 win over Luton at Kenilworth Road.

A header in the 89th minute from substitute Lucas Digne ensured Villa won for the third game in a row in the Premier League to stay five points clear of Tottenham in the race for Champions League qualification.

Emery’s side were comfortably on top in the first half and went in at the break with a commanding two-goal lead given to them by Watkins’ brace.

Luton struck back, seemingly re-energised by the looming prospect of a fourth straight league defeat, with goals from Tahith Chong and Carlton Morris, but Digne’s late intervention settled the contest in Villa’s favour.

However, it was the contribution of Watkins that was singled out by Emery.

“Fantastic, brilliant,” he said of his team’s top scorer, who now has 21 for the season.

“He’s an example for other players. Every day working hard, every day trying to learn more.

“His mentality, to increase his level, practising and practising on the training ground. His commitment to work in the tactical areas we are planning every match.

“He’s scoring, he’s getting chances, he’s assisting, defending set-pieces. He has been available to play 90 minutes more or less, keeping fit to play a lot. He’s fantastic.

“But he needs his team-mates as well to help him. We are a team. We have to try to get our performances through the team. With the commitment he’s showing, for everyone he is an example.

“For mentality, it’s difficult to find a player better than him. But his skill is also a high level.

“He wants to learn every day, to increase his level. Of course, his first objective is scoring goals, but then as well, tactically, his work has been fantastic. Understanding, being clever.”

Asked if Watkins was one of the best in Europe, Emery said: “Yes, of course, he’s showing. The Premier League is the toughest league maybe in the world.

“But as a person he’s humble. He avoids the ego changing him. He’s fantastic as a person and as a professional.”

Luton boss Edwards, whose team are four points adrift of safety with 12 games to play, reflected on a result he found difficult to take.

“Bitterly disappointed,” he said. “The goals were avoidable, all three of them, as they always are.

“There was so much to like about the performance. Villa are so organised and a good team and it is not easy to score goals against them. They can hit you hard with counter-attacks or control the game.

“They are a very good team, but I thought we dominated the second half and had an outstanding performance.”

Aston Villa maintained their push for a top-four finish in the Premier League as substitute Lucas Digne headed an 89th-minute winner to defeat Luton 3-2 at Kenilworth Road.

Unai Emery’s side looked to have thrown away two points, allowing Luton to fight back from two goals down in the second half, until Digne arrived at the far post to turn Moussa Diaby’s deep cross past Thomas Kaminski and into the net, in front of ecstatic away fans.

The hosts had fought back bravely to level the game at 2-2, Tahith Chong and Carlton Morris scoring after a brace from Ollie Watkins had seemingly put Villa in control at the break.

Defeat for Rob Edwards’ side was their fourth in a row, whilst Villa maintained their five-point lead over Tottenham in the race for the Champions League.

Kaminski had been the home side’s hero in the opening quarter, first diving full stretch to turn away a right-footer from Jacob Ramsey, then yet more acrobatically when Watkins got in down the right and lashed one towards the near post, beaten behind brilliantly by the goalkeeper.

Yet his endeavours were rendered in vain a minute later when from the resulting corner Watkins headed Villa in front. Leon Bailey’s ball arched invitingly into the six-yard box where the Villa striker had got free, and he used the space afford by slack Luton marking to rise up and direct the ball coolly past Kaminski into the top corner for his 20th goal of the season.

Villa lost the influential Ramsey to injury on the half-hour mark, but it did little to break their confident stride. Watkins almost made it two 10 minutes before the break, standing up Teden Mengi on the right before knocking it round the defender and cracking a low shot off Kaminski’s far post.

Luton had been warned about Watkins’ pace in behind but their high line continued to allow him space, and soon he had made good on his threat of a second.

The defence had pushed up towards near the centre circle when Douglas Luiz lumped one over the top for Villa’s top scorer to stride on to. With no one in orange near him, he made light work of clipping Villa’s second goal in off the post. VAR checked for offside, but Watkins had timed his run perfectly.

Edwards’ side emerged with renewed urgency after the break and the home support responded in kind, roaring their team on as they began to find success attacking down the right with the lively Issa Kabore.

A goal to give them hope arrived after 66 minutes. Villa failed to deal with a corner, forcing Matt Cash into a desperate headed clearance off the line. Still the defence dithered, and as the ball ricocheted back into the six-yard box, Chong pounced to thump it home.

Suddenly Villa were tottering. Six minutes later, their lead was gone and it was the simplest Luton goal.

Alfie Doughty hit a huge, raking free-kick from near the touchline which sailed over everyone to the back post. Arriving unmarked with time to pick his spot was Morris, who timed his run expertly and with barely an upwards glance swept it beyond Martinez.

Luton were now rampant and an almost identical move gave Morris the chance to win it, fractionally failing to make the required contact as the ball was flashed across goal from Doughty’s free-kick.

They looked at least to have done enough for a point, but then came Digne’s dramatic intervention at the death to break Luton hearts and keep Villa in the Champions League driving seat.

Erling Haaland plundered five goals as holders Manchester City powered into the FA Cup quarter-finals with a 6-2 victory at Luton.

The Norwegian notched a first-half hat-trick at Kenilworth Road to put City 3-0 up, with Kevin De Bruyne providing the assist for each of the goals.

After Luton replied with efforts from Jordan Clark just prior to and just after the interval, Haaland notched his fourth – De Bruyne again registering an assist – and then a fifth, before Mateo Kovacic completed the rout.

Championship leaders Leicester pulled off a 1-0 win at Bournemouth thanks to an extra-time effort from substitute Abdul Fatawu.

Fatawu sent a fine shot past Cherries goalkeeper Mark Travers in the final minute of the first half of the additional period.

Newcastle are also through after getting past Blackburn 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw over 120 minutes at Ewood Park.

The contest went to spot-kicks after Sammie Szmodics’ 79th-minute equaliser for the Championship hosts cancelled out Anthony Gordon’s effort eight minutes earlier.

In the shootout Martin Dubravka made saves to deny Szmodics and Dominic Hyam as the Magpies prevailed.

Pep Guardiola praised the “generosity” of Kevin De Bruyne after he set up four of Erling Haaland’s five goals as Manchester City thrashed Luton at Kenilworth Road to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Haaland, who returned at the end of January from nearly two months out, grabbed the headlines with his finishing but this 6-2 win owed every bit as much to De Bruyne, the architect of four of his team-mate’s haul and a devastating creative presence throughout.

The pair combined for City’s opener inside three minutes. Matheus Nunes fed the Belgian with a clever reverse pass, releasing him into a channel down the left, and the cutback came to the left foot of Haaland who wrapped his boot around it for 1-0.

The same combination created the second, this time a pass threaded through the middle ended with Haaland fending off defender Teden Mengi and crashing it through the legs of Tim Krul.

The third arrived before the break, with VAR required to adjudicate that the Norwegian had successfully stayed onside as he set off to reach De Bruyne’s through-ball, chipping his finish over the goalkeeper.

Luton fought gamely in spite of the Haaland onslaught. Jordan Clark curled one brilliantly beyond Stefan Ortega at the end of the half, offering Rob Edwards’ side hope, before thumping in another at the near post after the break as the home fans sniffed a famous fightback.

They were given all of three minutes to dream. Haaland and City’s fourth was another tap-in from yet another De Bruyne set-up. The fifth cruel on Krul, the ball squirming through the goalkeeper’s body as the cup holders’ top scorer finally declared.

Mateo Kovacic hit a sixth, and Luton could breathe for the final few minutes after Haaland was withdrawn.

“The players read the game perfectly,” said Guardiola. “The connection of Kevin with Erling was great but everyone contributed. Happy to be in the quarter-finals, one game away from Wembley.

“Erling needs a guy with the vision, the quality, the generosity. Kevin is the less selfish player in front of goal. Kevin needs the movement from Erling. We know how aggressive they are.

“Every pass was good. The finishing from Erling was good. We could have scored more, we had two or three more chances, one against one with Krul. But the players read (the game) really well. They did it perfectly.

“My only concern was that Erling had been two months stopped, he couldn’t walk, couldn’t make anything. When you lose two months, that rhythm is not easy to get back.

“Every game he’s getting better. Kevin as well. Step by step, they are coming back.”

The game was only marred for City by the loss of a visibly upset Jack Grealish just before half-time to injury.

“I didn’t speak to the doctor but I think he was complaining a bit about his groin,” said Guardiola. “He felt really good but unfortunately was injured again.

“It’s been a tough season for him. He’ll have to recover well and help us when he’s able to come back.”

Luton boss Edwards reflected on a masterclass from De Bruyne and Haaland.

“There’s no doubt about it, they were incredible,” he said. “The played in the space we gave them and did it very well. But our lads were incredibly brave and bold, and stuck to the task.

“We’re not going change, we just need to get better, to keep improving.”

Erling Haaland scored five of Manchester City’s six goals in a superb individual display as the FA Cup holders thrashed Luton at Kenilworth Road to progress to the quarter-finals.

City’s top scorer made it 27 for the season despite having missed almost two months with a foot injury, driving his team on to a ruthless 6-2 victory, though the win owed as much to the excellent Kevin De Bruyne, architect of four of his team-mate’s goals.

Mateo Kovacic also scored with a worthy strike of his own late on after Jordan Clark had netted either side of the interval to haul Luton from three down to within a single goal. In truth, though, they never really got close to City.

Pep Guardiola’s side were irresistible in the first half, ripping through Luton from all angles with De Bruyne and Haaland at their electric best. It took under three minutes to make their breakthrough.

Manuel Akanji brought it out of defence and fed Matheus Nunes ahead of him on the left. Nunes stood up Amari’i Bell and played a clever reverse pass that split Luton’s back line and ran through to De Bruyne, and he raised his glance to see Haaland waiting to wrap his left boot around the ball and thump it home from 10 yards.

Luton’s Teden Mengi had competed well with Haaland, matching him for power and strength in one-on-one duels, but after 18 minutes the City striker won out and doubled his side’s lead. De Bruyne again was the creator, receiving it from Haaland on halfway and returning it into the Norwegian’s stride. He burst beyond Mengi and crashed it through the legs of Tim Krul with unerring cool.

His hat-trick nearly arrived soon after, a ball threaded through at pace by John Stones finding his run, but this time Krul raced out and blocked. Nunes was next to go close, thrashing wide at the near post after finding space inside the box.

City threatened to run riot. De Bruyne hit a low volley brilliantly beaten out by the right arm of Krul, who was rewarded with good fortune on the rebound when Haaland’s follow-up landed in his gloves.

Luton wanted offside for Haaland’s third, but VAR showed he had timed his run off the shoulder substitute Joe Johnson expertly. The finish, chipped over Krul as he advanced, oozed confidence.

It looked like being a near-perfect half for Guardiola, marred only by the loss of Jack Grealish just before the break to injury.

Then out of nothing, Luton brought a roar from home fans on the stroke of the interval, a brilliant finish sent spinning into Stefan Ortega’s top corner from 25 yards by Clark.

They came at City at the start of the second half with the same ferocity with which the holders had begun the match, and they were rewarded similarly early. Clark was closer to goal this time though the angle was devilish. A shot across the goalkeeper looked to be on, but instead he lashed it towards the near post and beyond Ortega for 3-2.

It gave Kenilworth Road all of three minutes to dream. That was all it took for Haaland to score his and his team’s fourth, De Bruyne again the provider as he squared for a simple tap-in.

His fifth was harsh on Krul, a left-foot drive squirming through the goalkeeper as though bamboozled by City’s dizzying onslaught. Haaland had scored five in under an hour.

Kovacic added his name to the scoresheet, rifling one in in the 72nd minute to deepen Luton’s misery.

There was at least late respite when Haaland was brought off in the closing stages. It had been his and City’s night.

Following Jayden Danns’ brief debut appearance for Liverpool in their home win against Luton, visiting boss Rob Edwards, in conversation with Jurgen Klopp, was seen mouthing: “I played against his dad!”

Striker Danns, 18, is the son of former Crystal Palace, Bolton and Bury midfielder Neil Danns and is not the only offspring of a once-famous footballer to have made a breakthrough this season.

Here, the PA news agency looks at five more young talents with dads you may remember.

Bobby Clark

Liverpool’s academy has more teenagers with famous fathers, including Bobby Clark, son of former Newcastle and Fulham midfielder Lee. Bobby, 19, made his Premier League debut against Bournemouth at Anfield last season, coming on as an 83rd-minute substitute with the Reds leading 9-0. He repeated that feat this season in a 4-0 win on the south coast and has come off the bench three more times in the league this term, including late on against the Hatters on Wednesday night. Bobby moved to Liverpool from Newcastle – the club where dad Lee started his playing career – in August 2021. Lee went on to join the Magpies’ arch-rivals Sunderland before returning to the Premier League with Fulham in 2001 after helping the Cottagers to promotion. He later moved into management, most notably with Huddersfield and Birmingham. Lewis Koumas, son of former Tranmere and West Brom midfielder Jason, and Keyrol Figueroa, whose dad Maynor made 214 Premier League appearances for Wigan and Hull, are also part of the Reds’ youth set-up.

Gio Reyna

He may only be 21, but Sunderland-born Gio Reyna moved to Nottingham Forest with almost 100 senior appearances at German giants Borussia Dortmund under his belt. Gio is the son of former Rangers, Sunderland and Manchester City midfielder Claudio Reyna and is a United States international, just like his dad. Midfielder Gio joined Forest in January on a loan deal until the end of the season and has made two substitute appearances so far.

Jack Hinshelwood

Adam Hinshelwood may not be a household name to many football fans outside of Brighton, but son Jack is following in his footsteps. Adam made his Seagulls debut under the management of his uncle, Martin, in 2002, when the club were playing in the second tier. A central defender, Adam spent seven years as a player at Brighton and has managed Worthing since 2017. Midfielder Jack, 18, made his Premier League debut on the last day of last season, coming on as an 89th-minute substitute. He started his first league game in September – a 6-1 defeat at Aston Villa – and scored the first of his three goals this term against Brentford in December to secure a 2-1 win.

Bailey Cadamarteri

Danny Cadamarteri hit the headlines when he scored a stunning second goal for Everton in a 2-0 Merseyside derby victory against Liverpool in 1997. Unfortunately his career failed to ignite after that, as he left the Toffees in 2002 having scored just 13 goals in almost 100 appearances. Danny’s son Bailey, also a striker, has made an impact at Sheffield Wednesday this season aged just 18. He made his Championship debut in November and scored his first senior goal in a 3-1 win against Blackburn at the start of December. He was named the EFL’s Young Player of the Month after two more goals that month and now has four to his name for the season. Danny’s younger son Caelan-Kole is also making a name for himself in the Owls’ youth teams.

Tommy Doyle

Tommy Doyle comes from fine stock. Although his father Scott was not a professional footballer, the 22-year-old’s grandparents made over 750 appearances between them for Manchester City, with Mike Doyle and Glyn Pardoe winning the First Division title, FA Cup, League Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup with the club in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Midfielder Tommy is also a Manchester City player but is currently on a season-long loan at Wolves, who have the option to buy him this summer. The England Under-21 international has played 20 times in all competitions for Gary O’Neil’s side so far this term.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk admits the team was probably guilty of trying too hard to compensate for the absence of a host of star players in the 4-1 victory over Luton.

Forwards Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah were the latest added to an absentee list, which had grown to 11 senior players and left manager Jurgen Klopp short of options, certainly of match-winners, as his bench comprised three defenders and four academy players.

The likes of Harvey Elliott and Cody Gakpo, and to a lesser extent Luis Diaz, all struggled up front in the first half, but four goals in an impressive second-half comeback after going behind in the 12th minute re-established a four-point advantage at the top of the Premier League.

Klopp’s side have won now 22 points from losing positions this season, more than any other team.

“First half with the very first chance (for Diaz) we could have changed the game, but we were a bit rushed in the final third,” said Van Dijk.

“Obviously the way we turned it around was credit to the boys.

“Staying calm is the most difficult thing to do, especially in the situation where we are at; everyone wants to show themselves and play their best game ever, and you have to try to stay calm and find the right solution.

“The first half was a bit rushed and that’s why we struggled a little bit in that sense. Being 1-0 down is never nice, but the way we bounced back is good to see.”

Elliott, on his 100th appearance, scored the team’s 100th goal of the season with the late fourth to end his night on a high after coming in for some vociferous criticism from the crowd.

However, Klopp – who remonstrated with a fan who appeared to target Elliott after yet another pass went astray in the first half – defended the 20-year-old.

“Top performance. And Harvey is a top player; 100 games for Liverpool FC in not the worst period of the club’s history, where you cannot afford players who (just) play the position, that’s a proper sign,” he added.

“He had not a great first half. There was a pass with Lucho (Diaz); I saw he wants to play the pass instead of maybe he can go in a one-on-one situation.

“But the reaction in the second half is the main difference, that’s the thing. That made this performance the performance and I’m so happy for him.

“I don’t lose patience in these moments, I know that it’s a challenge for young boys.

“When everything is great, they are super talents. When things don’t go well, you have to show up. And that’s what he’s learning more and more.

“And with 100 games under his belt, we all know he will definitely play another 100, 200, 300 – if you ask him, 500 – for this club.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp evoked memories of their famous win over Barcelona in 2019 during their “thunderstorm” second-half comeback to beat Luton 4-1.

Trailing to Chiedozie Ogbene’s 12th-minute header, Klopp’s side were a different prospect after the break with Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, Luis Diaz and Harvey Elliott bringing up 100 goals for the season.

While it by no means matched the magnitude of their Champions League semi-final comeback after losing the first leg 3-0 to the Catalan giants, it was significant in terms of the title race – re-establishing a four-point lead over Manchester City – and the invigorating atmosphere which the team will undoubtedly have to lean on during the run-in.

“Tonight is one of those nights where it is difficult to stop talking. I am so happy,” said Klopp, who was without 11 first-team players including forwards Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez who remain doubtful for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Chelsea.

“We had to ignore the fact we were 1-0 down and use the things that are good and improve the counter-press. The second half was a thunderstorm. Wow.

“I will mention this game from now quite a few times. I promised my team a few months ago that I would never mention or use the Barcelona game as an example and I used it again today so I broke my promise.

“Just because before the game, it was kind of similar. Many players missing, stuff like this. The team that time ignored the fact who is missing and I want us to ignore the fact who is missing.

“That is difficult because the public got the whole knowledge of who is missing only tonight. It’s like… I needed a few minutes to process it when I got all the news.

“But from that moment on, when you know how you can deal with it and sort it for this game, it feels really good. That is what I wanted the boys to show.

“This is an example tonight. This is their Barcelona, now against Luton. A difficult situation, plenty of reasons to give up in moments: not tonight and I saw only a super group fighting.

“If you don’t limit yourself with bad thoughts, you can fly. And that’s what the boys did.”

Luton head coach Rob Edwards, whose side were impressive in the first half, admitted scoring so early just made their task harder.

“We just made them angry,” he said. “Overall it was a really good first half. Second half I thought we saw Anfield, saw Liverpool, saw their full-throttle football. Their counter-pressing football was amazing.

“In the end, it was a great learning curve for us to see what the best looks like. I know they had some players missing, but their second-half performance was like the best out there.

“I thought we were very, very good. They were better.”

A stirring second-half comeback saw Premier League leaders Liverpool restore their four-point advantage at the top and avoid one of the shocks of the season with a 4-1 victory over Luton.

Chiedozie Ogbene’s early header was only the 11th league goal a visiting team had scored at Anfield this season but for a long time it looked like producing another twist in the title race as the depleted hosts struggled to find their best form.

But headers from Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo within the space of two minutes turned things around before Luis Diaz and Harvey Elliott fired home to ease them away from the clutches of second-placed Manchester City.

Any slip up, even at this stage, could have significant implications in what is currently a three-way battle and without this victory City would have had the chance to go top at Bournemouth on Saturday as Liverpool are otherwise engaged in the Carabao Cup final against Chelsea.

That Wembley encounter meant no risks were taken with Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez, who are both carrying knocks, but with injuries had already ruling out nine other players it left Jurgen Klopp with very few options.

What the first half, in particular, showed was that stand-ins Elliott and Gakpo lacked half-a-yard of pace both over the ground and in their passing.

They were not helped by some poor decision-making by Diaz, the one regular starter in the forward line, who in only the third minute delayed his shot too long as he tried to manoeuvre it on to his right foot and then shot wide with only goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski to beat.

Luton stunned Anfield by taking the lead in the 12th minute. Tahith Chong received a return pass from Cauley Woodrow before shooting from a narrow angle and the ball squeezed under Caoimhin Kelleher and bounced up to the far post where Ogbene headed into an empty goal.

Luton’s gameplan was then to try to attack the space behind the full-backs but limit Liverpool’s options by going man-for-man in defence, which often left them two on two.

The last visiting team to win a league game at Anfield – Leeds in October 2022 – did the same.

And Luton also worked harder – Albert Sambi Lokonga easing Elliott off the ball as he looked to shoot from Gakpo’s flick-on – and smarter as the hosts resorted to firing in long-range shots.

Elliott’s radar was off from two breakaways as his passes to Gakpo were three feet short and two yards too long as the final ball continued to elude them and frustrations threatened to boil over with Klopp exploding in rage at a fan near the front of the main stand, presumably for his negative reaction to a third mis-placed Elliott pass.

The early omens in the second half were not much better as Diaz fired straight at Teden Mengi but when Gakpo’s near-post shot was turned behind Van Dijk powered home a header from Alexis Mac Allister’s 56th-minute corner.

Two minutes later it was Gakpo producing a brilliant leap to launch Conor Bradley’s cross past Kaminski, who had brilliantly saved Bradley’s deflected shot with his legs.

The Luton goalkeeper did even better to repel another powerful Van Dijk header as Liverpool turned the screw, with substitute Andy Robertson charging forward to tee up Diaz for the third.

In doing so he became the fifth Liverpool player to reach double figures, which is the best of any team in Europe’s top five leagues, with Elliott grabbing his second of the season late on as Luton remained in the bottom three.

Luton captain Tom Lockyer has shown the scar of his implantable cardioverter defibrillator and called it his “new little superpower” following his cardiac arrest.

The 29-year-old midfielder collapsed on the pitch in the 59th minute of the Hatters’ Premier League game at Bournemouth on December 16, his heart stopping for two minutes and 40 seconds, and has since been fitted with an ICD.

He said on Sunday it was “out of his hands” whether he will ever play football again, but joked on Wednesday morning that his defibrillator was not “too intrusive” as it does not affect his golf swing.

“I call it my new little superpower really because after something like this happens and you make a recovery you have it in there just in case,” Lockyer told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.

“It just in my side here. I’ll show you. It just sits there. The battery lasts for about eight years. To start with it was very sore and I still can’t sleep on my left side but I never slept on my left side.

“You get a little iPad almost and it plugs into a wall and every night you click a button on that and it syncs up to your defib an reports back to the hospital and shows your heartbeat throughout the whole day, if there was any sort of irregularities and if the device is still working.

“It doesn’t affect my golf swing, I’m still rubbish at that so isn’t too intrusive!”

The Welshman, whose partner is pregnant with their first child, has been keeping himself busy during his recovery by building Lego.

“I am doing the Disney castle at the minute so that’s another 5,000 piece,” he said. “I said I would like to do the Titanic, but with the baby on the way I don’t know if I can do it!”

Andre Onana called for his Manchester United team-mates to stick together in the bad moments as well as the good after they extended their winning Premier League run to four games against Luton on Sunday.

Two early goals from striker Rasmus Hojlund set United on the way to a 2-1 victory at Kenilworth Road, though they were made to sweat on the result after Carlton Morris pulled one back for the Hatters after 14 minutes.

Hojlund became the youngest player to score in six consecutive Premier League games, with the 21-year-old’s barren spell that followed his £72million move from Atalanta seemingly now behind him.

United are within five points of fourth-place Aston Villa in the race to qualify for the Champions League.

They are unbeaten since going down 2-1 to Nottingham Forest on December 30 and have progressed to the fifth round of the FA Cup, where they face a rematch with Forest at the City Ground next week.

Goalkeeper Onana, who like Hojlund has found form after being criticised for high-profile errors following his arrival at Old Trafford from Inter Milan in the summer, said togetherness will be key if the team are to maintain their good run until the end of the season.

“You know we have to be together in good and bad moments,” said Onana.

“We have to help each other even when things are not going good. But what we are doing now is very nice and it’s the way we have to follow.

“We have to continue like this because we have done nothing. We didn’t do anything spectacular. Yet now we have to continue winning games, and that is the main thing.

“We have to try to win against every opponent and especially the next game is another final for us.”

United were made to work for three points by 17th-place Luton, who refused to lie down after falling two goals behind inside the opening seven minutes and quickly halved the arrears.

Rob Edwards’ side almost pulled off a famous fightback when Ross Barkley’s header hit the crossbar in stoppage time at the end of the game.

But Erik ten Hag’s team hung on to consolidate their place in sixth and keep the pressure on Villa and Tottenham.

“(Luton) are tough when they play at home and we expected a difficult game,” said Onana. “But like I always say, the quality is there. I’m happy for the victories and hopefully we continue this way this season.

“This is giving us more confidence. We are all happy, you know, when we win, especially this kind of game.

“These three points are very important for us to fight to be in the top four. But like I said, it’s always going to keep us together. This is just a strong motivation for us and makes us very happy.”

Erik ten Hag praised the character of Rasmus Hojlund after the 21-year-old scored twice in the first seven minutes to help Manchester United to a 2-1 Premier League win over Luton at Kenilworth Road.

After a slow beginning to his career at Old Trafford, the striker – signed from Atalanta for £72million – has now scored in six consecutive games to make it 13 goals in his first 30 outings for United, including seven in 20 in the league.

United made the perfect start against Rob Edwards’ side, taking the lead inside a minute when Amari’i Bell’s misjudged pass was latched onto by Hojlund, the Dane racing through and carrying the ball around goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski before rolling it into the empty goal.

And in no time the advantage was doubled, Hojlund again on target as he deflected Alejandro Garnacho’s effort from outside the box inside the near post with his chest.

Luton hit back and halved the arrears in the 14th minute. Former United player Tahith Chong collected the ball from Alfie Doughty and hit a shot that deflected up and into the path of skipper Carlton Morris, who got his head to the ball ahead of Andre Onana to make it 2-1.

Ten Hag’s side had chances to stretch their lead again after the break, most glaringly when Bruno Fernandes took the ball around Kaminski as the goalkeeper committed himself but saw his effort deflected away by a superb recovering block from Albert Sambi Lokonga.

On a day when United stretched their winning run in the league to four games to keep the pressure on Aston Villa and Tottenham in the race to qualify for the Champions League, Ten Hag picked out Hojlund for praise as he continues his adjustment to life in England.

“We are very happy with our recruitment, that we recruited the right character because he can perform under stress,” said Ten Hag.

“And when things go against him like in the first half of the season, he has the abilities to have a strong character, to be resilient, to be determined and score goals and that is what we saw when we scouted him.

“Of course, he needed some support because it’s not so easy when you’re so young but, in general, he kept calm and you see his abilities.”

It took Hojlund until Boxing Day to net his first league goal for United, scoring the late winner in a 3-2 comeback victory against Villa at Old Trafford.

Previously his only goals had come in the Champions League as the team crashed out of Europe before Christmas in last place in a tame group.

“In the start he didn’t have so much luck,” said Ten Hag. “He scored some goals, for instance, the one against Brighton, his first game, and they disallowed it and no one still knows why.

“There are moments that are very important in a new club and a new league, especially for a striker to build some confidence. That was not given but you see he is a fighter, he keeps going and he has great abilities in front of the goal.

“There are many ranges, areas, where he can improve but he has scoring abilities, that is clear. But what we have seen since September is he is improving in many other areas like holding up the ball.”

Luton boss Edwards reflected on a game in which his side were shellshocked by conceding a goal after only 37 seconds.

“It wobbled us and rocked us a little bit,” he said. “1-0 turned to 2-0 after about six minutes and you’re a little bit fearing the worst thinking ‘OK, how are we going to respond to this?’

“But I’ve got to give the players a lot of credit. They showed an air of calmness and belief, commitment to the game plan, and dragged themselves on to a really good performance.”

In-form Rasmus Hojlund’s early brace proved enough for Manchester United to edge past battling Luton after their electric start threatened to turn into a chastening Kenilworth Road collapse.

Erik ten Hag’s Red Devils have enjoyed an unbeaten start to 2024 and are hoping for a brighter future under Sir Jim Ratcliffe as the Ineos chairman prepares to officially become minority owner next week.

United racked up a fifth straight win in all competitions on Sunday but made hard work of their 2-1 victory against Luton after Hojlund had struck twice in the opening seven minutes.

The opener came just 37 seconds after kick-off and saw the 21-year-old replace Newcastle midfielder Joe Willock as the youngest player to score in six straight Premier League matches.

United had never gone ahead away in the Premier League quicker than that, nor had they moved 2-0 up on the road as early as they did when Hojlund then chested in Alejandro Garnacho’s volley.

But Luton have made life hard for the biggest clubs at Kenilworth Road and this was no different, with Carlton Morris pulling one back in the 14th minute.

Rob Edwards’ side were reinvigorated by that goal and constantly unsettled United, who were fortunate not to see Casemiro sent off for two bookings before his half-time substitution.

A breathless second period followed but somehow there was no more goals, with Ross Barkley seeing a stoppage-time header hit the bar for the hosts.

Luton captain Tom Lockyer said he “literally died” after his heart stopped for two minutes and 40 seconds during his harrowing on-pitch cardiac arrest.

The 29-year-old Welshman, speaking at length for the first time since he collapsed in the 59th minute of the Hatters’ abandoned Premier League game against Bournemouth on December 16, admitted it is “out of his hands” if he will ever play again.

Lockyer was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator after he was hospitalised for five days.

Reliving the incident which rocked the football world, Lockyer, who also suffered a collapse during May’s Championship play-off victory against Coventry, told Sky Sports: “It was just a normal day, and that was the most worrying thing because I felt completely fine.

“I have been looking for answers since but I have not been able to find any because it was just another day at the office.

“I was running towards the halfway line and I went really light headed. I thought I’d be ok in a second but I wasn’t.

“I woke up and the paramedics were there. I knew instantly it was different to my collapse in May. Last time it felt like I woke up from a dream, and this time I woke up from nothingness.

“I could see there was more panic and I was a bit disorientated. I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t move. I was trying to work out what was happening, and I remember thinking, ‘I could be dying here’.

“It was a surreal thought to to have, not being able to respond, and you can see the panic going on.”

Lockyer’s voice crackled as he continued: “I could feel them put the drip in my arm and it was a hard mix of emotions. Eventually I came round and I was able to speak and to respond. When I felt ok, it was then a relief I was alive.

“Following what happened in May, I have a recording device in my chest, and I was out for two minutes and 40 (seconds).

“It was hardest on my family having to watch that. They had it worse than me. My old man was there (at the match) and my girlfriend was seven months pregnant at the time.

“My mum was at home listening on the radio. She went off to make a cup of tea after Bournemouth scored, and when she came back my brother had turned the radio off. She asked ‘why’, and he had to say to her that Tom has gone down off the ball again.

“This is the bigger picture that people don’t see and that is the hardest part to deal with. I am not going to lie, it has been a tough couple of months.

“I don’t know if I have processed what happened. I don’t know if it will come back and bite me on the bum, but I have not had any emotions since what happened. I literally died but I have been numb to the whole thing since.”

Lockyer had an emotional reunion with his team-mates at the club’s training ground last month – his first visit to the Hatters’ Brache HQ since he collapsed.

The defender hopes he will be able to return to top-flight football, but said he will be subjected to further tests before he has an answer.

Lockyer, speaking ahead of his side’s clash with Manchester United, continued: “It is out of my hands (if he plays again).

“I am going to be dictated to by the medical staff and specialists. If there is a chance I could play again – and I am not going to do anything against medical advice – then I would love to.

“But it is far too early so say. There are tests that have to happen in the background. But I wouldn’t write it off yet.

“If I am not allowed to play again then I can say I captained Luton in the Premier League and I have scored a Premier League goal. I am very fortunate that I have had high moments in my career and scoring a Premier League goal is something you dream of as a kid.

“I am incredibly grateful to be alive. I have the device fitted now, and I almost feel invincible.”

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag will not underestimate Luton but insists going to Kenilworth Road is the same as any other ground.

The Hatters have beaten Newcastle and Brighton at home, drawn with Liverpool and pushed Manchester City and Arsenal close before losing by the odd goal.

They surprisingly lost to fellow strugglers Sheffield United when they visited last weekend but Ten Hag will not read much into that result.

“It doesn’t matter who you face, if you play the best or the worst or in between, it doesn’t matter,” said the Dutchman, whose side have won five and drawn one of their last six matches.

“We respect every opponent and definitely we are not in a position to underestimate any opponent, so we will not do.

“We have to play our best because we have seen their performances across the season are very good, and especially the last weeks, they are really improving. I have a lot of respect for this team, and we have to play our best football.”

United are unbeaten in the last 12 meetings against Luton in all competitions, winning 10 and drawing two.

Their record against newly-promoted clubs – winning the last 11 games and conceding just five – is the best since the latter years of Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign when he won 12 in succession between 2011 and 2013.

And while Kenilworth Road has its own individual idiosyncrasies which most Premier League clubs will not be accustomed to, Ten Hag dismissed what effect that may have on his side.

“The pitch, is it smaller or longer? (Is it) 11 v 11? No referees are coming?” he added.

“Every ambience is different, we have to deal with the circumstances, it’s about playing football 11 v 11, we have to make it our game.

“Every ambience is different, of course, that is what I want to say and we have to deal with the circumstances. We have to make it our game.”