Fox takes Wilshere by 'surprise' as Town teen isn't far away from Hatters XI

Hatters boss Jack Wilshere expects academy graduate Harry Fox to remain in and around the Town first team until January at the very least after admitting the teenager is a player who has taken him by ‘surprise’ this season.

The 18-year-old, who has been at Kenilworth Road since the age of nine, came to Wilshere’s attention when he trained with the first team last season, getting his senior debut in the Vertu Trophy, as he came on against Brighton & Hove Albion U21s and Exeter City, then starting the knock-out contest against Swindon Town.

Fox went up the pecking order even more during the summer, as heading away with the senior squad to Spain, he also impressed in several pre-season friendlies, and was on the bench for the Carabao Cup second round trip to Premier League outfit Chelsea. Coming on for the final half an hour at Stamford Bridge was easily the biggest occasion of his career to date, but after a few nervy moments, he soon settled down and certainly didn’t look out of place on the big stage.

The youngster was back in the match-day squad on Saturday, called upon to replace on-loan Newcastle defender Harrison Ashby after 21 minutes of the 1-1 draw against Leyton Orient. There was a chance that Fox could have been loaned out before the transfer window shut to get regular game time and continue his development, as although he could still join a National League team, it doesn’t look like that will the case, as Wilshere said: “I think Foxy took everyone a little bit by surprise, especially when he first came in and started training with us.

"We were like, okay, we really like him, then he stayed with us, played some games in the Vertu, and then we had a conversation with Foxy and the staff at the end of the season, as we want Foxy to play. I think he does need to play, however, he’s not too far away from playing with us, so it’s trying to get that balance right. As always, I want to prioritise Foxy’s development. We can easily get into a situation where, because he’s really close, he just ends up with us and training all the time.

"I think that will probably be the case until January and then we reassess. He might have played more games than he would have thought up until then, or we might look at it again and say, okay, let’s get him out, let’s get him some game time. That being said he’s developing really nicely. I thought when he came on against Chelsea, he was really good, really mature.

"I know he’s played in central midfield growing up through the academy, we see him more as a left back, but probably someone similar to JJ (Joe Johnson), who can play that role going inside, but he can also play in midfield as well. Against a really good team, in a really big stadium, in an environment he’s never faced, I thought he brought some calm and control to the team. He’s got a lot of attributes that we like as a club, but at some point he does need to play."

Since he has come into the first team, Fox was selected as a left back in his first three outings, although against Chelsea he was pushed further forward to take on a midfield berth. Wilshere wasn’t keen on pigeonholing where he thinks the teenager’s best position is just yet, continuing: “I don’t want to say at the moment because as a left back he does everything really well.

"He defends well, in possession he’s excellent, the only thing I would say is that we haven’t really seen where he’s been really tested week after week against different wingers at the intensity of League One. I don’t know the answer to that question, I like him in both. We’ll keep working with him and developing him in both because if he plays left back he can roll inside. He’s got a good future and we want to continue to work with him and probably the best thing about him is his humility and what a top kid he is.”

When making his League One debut at the weekend, it was in a new position that Fox hadn’t really been deployed in so far, taking over the left wingback slot due to Harrison Ashby’s injury, which saw Izzy Jones push over to the right and Fox on the opposite flank. Although he wasn’t the most adventurous at times, particularly in the second period when the Hatters were hunting a winner, Wilshere was happy with his efforts, adding: “I thought he did well. It’s not easy for him, that’s not his position.

"He can play left back, he can play in midfield, he showed today he can play wingback. Credit to him for coming on in the moment he did and then playing in a position where he can play there, he definitely can play there, he showed us. He’s a different type of profile which actually I thought was quite nice at times, where he wouldn’t be as high as someone like Izzy. It gives you a different threat to Izzy that then drags out one of their players, but he’s got the temperament, the confidence to step in and play at this level so credit to him.”