Bloomfield not afraid to make 'bold' decisions as Hatters duo are left out of Owls draw

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
Mpanzu and Holmes are both absent at Hillsborough

Luton boss Matt Bloomfield declared he wasn’t afraid of taking the ‘bold’ decisions needed for the Hatters as they look to escape the Championship relegation zone this season after leaving long-serving midfielder Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu and defender Tom Holmes out of the squad that faced Sheffield Wednesday yesterday afternoon.

Town finally stopped the rot of 12 successive away defeats at Hillsborough, earning a 1-1 draw, as all four of the club’s most recent signings were involved, Thelo Aasgaard starting, with Millenic Alli, Josh Bowler and Kal Naismith all coming on as substitutes. The bench to face the Owls didn’t include Mpanzu though, who has played just 30 minutes since Bloomfield took over, meaning he wasn’t involved in Luton’s match day squad for the first time since March 2023 when the Hatters drew 1-1 at Sunderland in the Championship.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They were also without centre half Holmes as well, who hasn’t featured since the 3-2 defeat at Oxford United, fuelling speculation that the pair could leave before tomorrow night’s transfer deadline, as Bloomfield needs to move some of his squad on in order to name the 25-man squad for the remainder of the campaign. Asked about the duo, he said: “It was a decision not to bring them. I know Pelly has had an incredible history at the football club and he’s always in the match day squad.

Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu was left out of Luton's squad at Sheffield Wednesday - pic: Ryan Hiscott/Getty ImagesPelly Ruddock Mpanzu was left out of Luton's squad at Sheffield Wednesday - pic: Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images
Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu was left out of Luton's squad at Sheffield Wednesday - pic: Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images

"Again I’ve got to make the right decisions for what I feel is right on the day. Holmesy as well, with having Kal back we didn’t need two central defenders. We’ve got a slightly inflated squad at this moment in time so some of these decisions are going to have to be made. I’m not always going to get them right, but I’ll always make the true decisions that I feel are right in the moment.”

Defender Amari’i Bell also missed out with a hamstring problem, while recent addition Isiah Jones didn’t travel up either and discussing the pair, Bloomfield continued: “Amari’i trained yesterday and he’s fine but, especially on a big pitch against quick forwards, we were worried about that exposure, but Amari’i will be fine.

"Izzy just had something personal going on this week. Everything’s fine, nothing to worry about, but he wasn’t able to be here with us today which is fine. The lads are humans right and we’ve got to look after them at the right time. Izzy’s a great boy, I’m really looking forward to working with him, he’s all in but he just had a little something.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Luton’s team that took the field had a surprising look to it, particularly in defence, with both full backs changing, Joe Johnson coming in for his first start under Bloomfield, as did Reuell Walters, Daiki Hashioka dropping to the bench. Asked about the alterations, Bloomfield added: “They’re young lads with huge potential to be very good players for us as a football club.

"Amari’i felt his hamstring a little bit on Wednesday and wasn’t able to train. We did a lot of work with Joe so we thought it was the right thing to keep him in the team. I thought Reuell deserved the opportunity to play at right full back. We’re trying to get the balance right within the back four, so I don’t mind bold decisions, brave decisions. I always have to do what I feel is right and if that comes across as whatever then that’s fine. Every decision I make will be for the best of the football club and I felt that was the right thing to do.”

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

News you can trust since 1891
Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice