Luton Town v Oxford United could have a spicy new edge - Here is why | OneFootball

Luton Town vs Oxford United could be a battle between two former Arsenal players in the dugout next season

Luton Town vs Oxford United will be one of the games to look out for next season in League One when the EFL fixture lists are released on Thursday.

The two sides may not have as fierce a rivalry as they have with the likes of Stevenage, Watford or Swindon Town, respectively, but the distance between the two clubs will make for a great atmosphere when they both face off.

Above that, the fact that the two sides will be among the early-season promotion favourites in the third tier will make for an intriguing matchup, too.

With Luton taking a strong run of form and momentum from last season into 2026/27, and Oxford coming down from the Championship, it'll be expected that both games will be big six-pointers in the race for the top two.

But recent reports linking former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey with the Oxford job could give this particular matchup next season an even bigger edge compared to any other time the Hatters and the Yellows face off.

Former teammates Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere could meet in the dugout next season

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It's always an intriguing prospect when two of the younger managers in the game go head-to-head in the EFL. It provides an insight into how the game may be changing, and potentially highlights a couple of head coaches who could find themselves at the top level in the future.

If Oxford hire Ramsey, not only would the combined age between the Welshman and Luton's boss, Jack Wilshere, be less than 70, but it would also act as a reunion between two former Arsenal teammates who know each other inside and out.

Both Wilshere and Ramsey made their Arsenal debuts within two minutes of each other in 2008, coming on as 16 and 17-year-olds in a 4-0 win over Blackburn Rovers, and would go on to spend over a decade at the Emirates.

Both were huge prospects in North London and shared the pitch 101 times together. It should have been a lot more, too, if not for various injury issues, the majority of which were bestowed upon Wilshere.

They won two FA Cups together, a Community Shield, and came runners-up in the EFL Cup while at Arsenal, throughout careers that also spanned numerous appearances in the UEFA Champions League.

But the 2026/27 campaign could see them in opposite dugouts leading third-tier sides in what hopes to be a promotion-winning campaign for both of them.

Jack Wilshere got one over Aaron Ramsey in an interim battle — all eyes will be on who wins if they both face off as permanent head coaches

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Indeed, if Ramsey does get appointed at Oxford and his Yellows side takes on a Wilshere-led Luton, it wouldn't be the first time that the two have locked horns in the dugout.

Towards the tail end of the 2024/25 Championship campaign, both Wilshere and Ramsey were the interim head coaches of Norwich City and Cardiff City, respectively, after both had parted ways with their managers in the final weeks of the term.

The two met on the final day in a dead rubber affair. The Canaries were set to finish in mid-table one year on from a play-off campaign, and Cardiff were already relegated to League One.

On that day, the two played out an entertaining six-goal affair with Norwich coming out on top, winning 4-2 in a game which saw fellow former Arsenal prospect Calum Chambers sent off in the early stages for the relegated side.

That was Wilshere's first win in the dugout, after drawing his only previous game, and it set the groundwork for his eventual hire at Luton last October. Despite a rocky start, the Hatters came good at the end of the season, going on a 12-game unbeaten run to end the year, which included a win in the EFL Trophy final.

Ramsey, however, wouldn't win any of his three games as interim boss at Cardiff, and all eyes would be on whether that would be a sign of things to come if he were named Oxford boss, albeit very unlikely.

Either way, if there does end up being a scenario where Ramsey and Wilshere go head-to-head next season as head coaches, it'll be very exciting to see who gets the win in their second meeting, and whether this could be a preview of a tactical battle seen in the Premier League before long.