Charlton complete the 'significant signing' of ex-Luton midfielder Luke Berry

Former Luton midfielder Luke Berry has completed his hotly anticipated move to League One side Charlton Athletic on a free transfer.

The 31-year-old ended a fantastic seven year stint with the Hatters in the summer, where he became the first Town player to score in all four top divisions of English football last season after finding the net against Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. He opted to move away from Kenilworth Road in search of regular first team football having made just six league starts in the last two years and will now get that when linking up with ex-Luton manager Nathan Jones at the Valley, as the Addicks announced his acquisition this morning.

Speaking to the club’s official website about joining, Berry, who has penned a two-year contract, said: “Nathan told me how great the club is. When I finished up at Luton, I rang him straight away and wanted to get it going. This Charlton team is a really good team. We just need to believe in ourselves, put in the hard work and I can see us doing something special.”

Meanwhile, Jones, who signed Berry from Cambridge when in charge of the then League Two Hatters back in 2017, the midfielder going on to find the net 26 times in 184 appearances, including twice in the top flight, also named in the PFA League Two Team of the Year back in 2018, continued: “He’s one of the best goalscoring midfielders outside of the Premier League in recent years in terms of his outputs and we’re really delighted to have him.

“He’s a player I know very well as a character, athlete and footballer. It’s a significant signing for us with the track record that he’s got of promotions. He’s obviously had three promotions with Luton and that’s exactly what we’ve brought him in for. We’ve fought off a lot of competition to get him and I’m just pleased that our club and my relationship with him has enabled us to get the signing over the line. I’m sure he’s going to be a significant signing for the club.

“His last appearance was in the Premier League and his next appearance is going to be for Charlton Athletic, so that’s the type of calibre that we want to attract. We’ve fought off a lot of Championship interest for Luke. He’s similar to me in terms of wanting to be part of another project and wanting somewhere where he can be for a while and get his teeth stuck into. He’s someone that I absolutely love working with on a day-to-day basis and that’s going to continue.”

Finally, technical director Andy Scott added: “As part of this summer’s recruitment strategy we want to add quality, experience and a winning mentality to the young talent we have in our squad. We’re delighted to sign Luke, a player who ticks all those boxes and who has an excellent track record working under Nathan.

“Having played most recently in the Premier League and achieved three promotions in seven seasons, we’re really pleased to bring Luke to Charlton to be reunited with Nathan, a manager who knows how to get the best out of him."