Luton to cast their transfer net ‘a little bit further’ as Hatters boss confirms an interest in Ecuadorian U20 international

Luton boss Rob Edwards has revealed the club are beginning to cast their transfer net ‘a little bit further’ when it comes to looking at players who can bolster his squad at Kenilworth Road.

The Hatters were linked with a move for Ecuadorian U20 international midfielder Oscar Zambrano prior to the transfer window closing earlier this month, the LDU Quito teenager impressing at the U20 World Cup held in Argentina earlier this year.

Director Esteban Paz had revealed to Radio Cobertura, relayed by ESPN, that the Hatters and Dutch giants Ajax were both interested in the youngster, with the pair reportedly having bids turned down, Luton eventually bringing in Arsenal’s Albert Sambi Lokonga on loan instead, although he is now out injured for a few months.

With all of Edwards’ signings since taking over as Hatters boss coming from English-based sides, midfielder Ross Barkley having left Nice in the summer, then discussing Zambrano, he said: “I know the name, we are starting to maybe cast the net out a little bit wider, but there’s a number of young players who have been on the radar that we’ve had a look at, so not too much in it at the moment.

"There’s a lot of people in that big net at the moment, a lot of names that we’ll keep looking at over the coming months.”

Fellow Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion have the best model at the moment when it comes to scouring the foreign market, bringing in Moises Caicedo, Kaoru Mitoma, Julio Enciso, Alex Mac Allister and Leandro Trossard to name just five players recently.

It has helped the south coast side finish sixth in the Premier League and achieve European football for the first time in their history, while also boost the club’s finances immeasurably, with Caicedo joining Chelsea for £115m earlier this season, Mac Allister heading to Liverpool for a fee that could reach £55m.

Although operating at nowhere near that kind of standard, it’s an avenue that Edwards clearly wants to explore for the same reasons, adding: “It’s a very much smaller scaled down way of things, but you can look at scouting, whether it’s data and people that will flash up on certain metrics and then we can pursue that a little bit and get to watch them.

"We’re not quite at Brighton’s level yet, but we’re maybe starting to cast the net out a little bit further.

“It is appealing as there is some real talent there first and foremost, and then from a financial point of view it can really work as well.

“It ticks a lot of boxes for our model as a football club and how we want to try and move forward.

“We’ll keep an eye on a lot of the players who have been brought to our attention, but I love working with young players anyway, as they're the ones you can really help mould and keep improving."