"We do not fear Chelsea and their expensive signings." Rob Edwards aims dig at Chelsea's summer spending spree ahead of Luton Town clash.

Luton Town will be playing their second game of the Premier League against Chelsea, a member of the Big Six. The Hatters boss, Rob Edwards, has come out to say that he isn’t afraid of Chelsea and their expensive lineup.

 Luton Town earned promotion to the Premier League for the first time since the 1991/92 season. Due to financial problems, they were eventually relegated to the fifth tier of English football and even played non-league football. They became the first club to return to the top division after getting relegated to the fifth tier.

On the other hand, Chelsea is one of the most successful football clubs in England and the world. They are also one of the Premier League’s Big Six teams. They’ll pose a challenge for any side, not to talk of a newly promoted team. The gap between Luton Town and Chelsea becomes wider if you consider their spending capacity.

Edward’s side has spent just €20M this summer, while Chelsea has spent about €400M. The Blues have been looking to reshape the squad and get back to winning ways after finishing the 2022/23 season in 12th place.

 Luton's home game against fellow promoted side Burnley was postponed last weekend as work continues on improving Kenilworth Road.

The trip to west London will highlight the vast difference in spending between the two clubs but Edwards will not be using the shortfall as an excuse.

“I think it (lack of expectation) helps us, I do. We have our own standards, our own beliefs.

“I know what these players are capable of – I’ve got total belief and faith in them that we can be competitive in every game.

“We know what we are going into this year. We know we will be written off by a lot of people, it is understandable and nothing to be taken personally.

“I think it puts more pressure on them and off us but when I had a meeting with the players, I’m stressing that we want to go and win this game.”

Luton have relied largely on free transfer signings to build their squad and one to arrive this summer is England midfielder Ross Barkley, who could be in line to make his debut against his former club on Friday.

“He could indeed,” Edwards replied when asked if Barkley was fit enough to be in contention.

“He’s been training with us obviously now for a couple of weeks. We’ve been delighted with him. So he’s certainly in the mix.”

Edwards also confirmed another free-agent – former Manchester United defender Axel Tuanzebe – had been training with Luton over the past week and could yet earn a deal at the Bedfordshire outfit.