Football Bet of the Day: Wishing Wells gives us a goal

• Luton tipped by many to bounce back to Championship

• AFC Wimbledon based promotion on defensive strength

• Wells can make flying start at 2.26/5

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Luton Town v AFC Wimbledon
Friday 01 August, 20:00
Live on Sky Sports Main Event

Our perfect week was undone in Finland last night, as Bulgarian side Arda caused an upset with a late equaliser, eventually winning the Conference League qualifier on penalties.

Undeterred, we head to Bedfordshire, not to go to sleep but to watch a League One opener between recently relegated Luton Town and newly-promoted AFC Wimbledon. Both clubs have had highs and lows in recent years, and now find themselves operating in the same division.

Luton have had an extraordinary rollercoaster ride in the 21st century. They made it all the way from the National League to the Premier League, but back-to-back relegations have dumped them into League One. There are some survivors from their Premier League days like Tom Lockyer, Tahith Chong and Elijah Adebayo.

Former Wycombe boss Matt Bloomfield is now at the helm, and is widely expected to challenge for automatic promotion. Having joined the club in January, he came close to keeping the Hatters in the Championship, only for the club to be demoted by virtue of goal difference.

AFC Wimbledon excelled under Johnnie Jackson's leadership last term, but staying at this level will be an exacting task. Defensive strength was their bedrock last term, and they closed out the season with five 1-0 wins.

The player I'll focus on here is Luton's Nakhi Wells. The Bermudian netted 10 league goals in the Championship for Bristol City last term, and is expected to thrive at this level (he is 16/117.00 to be League One's top scorer).

We can back Wells to start with a bang and score at any time at 2.26/5, and given that Luton are 1.51/2 favourites to win the match, that seems a sensible play.

Now read EFL League One 2025-26 Tips: Read our season preview including a 1-24 prediction for every team