Bloomfield provides Chong update as new Luton duo will be given time to get fit
Recent signings are still in their pre-season stage
New Luton duo Jerry Yates and Cohen Bramall will both be given time to get up to speed at Kenilworth Road before being introduced into the first team after the pair moved to Kenilworth Road last week.
Former Arsenal youngster and Rotherham wingback Bramall was snapped up as a free agent having seen his short term deal at Championship side Portsmouth come to an end, his last game for Pompey over three months ago, that a 1-1 draw at Sheffield Wednesday on April 26, when he came on as a substitute for the final five minutes.
Yates meanwhile, finished the campaign on loan with Luton’s second tier relegation rivals Derby County, his last outing being the 0-0 draw at home to Stoke City on May 3, where he had 88 minutes before being replaced. Neither player has arrived in Bedfordshire with much of a pre-season under their belt though, as while Town’s players have been put through their paces, Bramall had little option but to train by himself, with Yates left out of the Swans’ training camp in Spain.
It means that Luton fans might have to wait a while until seeing them in action, from the start at least, as Bloomfield said: “Cohen has been without a club all summer. He’s been training all week, he’s done great, but he’s going to take some time as he’s basically in his first week of pre-season. Jerry’s been with Swansea, but hasn’t played any minutes, so again he’s further ahead than Cohen but he’s not where we want him and where we need him to be fully at it.”
When Bramall does return, then there is every chance he will get the chance to cement a place as Town’s first-choice left wingback, as with Amari’i Bell departing when his contract ended in the summer, Alfie Doughty having been sold to Millwall and Joe Johnson suffering a serious hamstring injury, then it meant new addition Nigel Lonwijk was forced to play out of position in Friday night’s opener against AFC Wimbledon.
On eventually having a natural option to figure in the formation that Bloomfield is opting to persist with, the boss continued “It’s crucial, your wingbacks are crucial when you’re three at the back. I said after the game on Friday, it’s common sense right, we had a wingback who’s been bought by another club and can you replace before you lose? When you’re selling and you’re not sure if they’re going to go? So all of these things come into football management, it’s not just as easy as black and white and this is what we’ve got.
"Nige did particularly well against Tottenham, but he’s a defender playing as a wingback, so there’s lots of things for us to consider. But off the back of that, you lose a wingback, do you change shape after you’ve been working on it for six weeks in pre-season? Probably not either. It’s putting it together and I do believe we will become better as the weeks go on. We’re still an evolving unit, lots of new players who are getting themselves up to speed, so I’m really excited by what we will become and we’re on the journey to get there.”
Another player who Town supporters will have to wait to see is attacker Tahith Chong, the former Birmingham and Manchester United midfielder finally returning to light training having also missed the entire pre-season through injury. Bloomfield said: “He’s closer, he’s back on the grass now. Unfortunately for us, he’s had an injury in pre-season. He didn’t play in the game today (the U21s 2-1 win over Leyton Orient on Wednesday), but he’s back on the grass and working his way back. Again, he’s been a big player for this football club the last couple of years, so he’s getting a lot closer.”
With Luton heading to Peterborough United this weekend, the Town manager didn’t have any other injury worries to concern himself, adding: “Everything was fine as far as I know, nothing’s come off the back of it (AFC Wimbledon victory), everyone got through the minutes all right. Some have missed parts of pre-season, so it was great to get big Macca (Mark McGuinness) on the pitch and Lamine (Fanne) with their injuries and illnesses. I feel like we will get fitter, we will get sharper, we will get stronger as we move on, as we get ones that have missed periods of times in pre-season up to speed better.”