Scottish international is back far quicker than Town boss expected
Brown gets first minutes since March during Saturday’s stalemate
Hatters boss Jack Wilshere admitted that striker Jacob Brown’s return to action has come quicker than he could have anticipated.
The 27-year-old saw his lengthy lay-off from a serious knee injury finally ended when he came off the bench during Saturday’s goalless draw against Rotherham United in League One. Although he couldn’t find the net, having a player who scored eight times in 32 games when last at this level for Barnsley in the 2018-19 campaign, will be a huge boost to the Hatters who are struggling for goals, particularly in league games on home soil this term, netting just five from their seven fixtures so far.
The Scottish international connected with a backheel that went tamely through to Millers keeper Cameron Dawson moments after his arrival, while Brown then gave further evidence of his instincts inside the area when captaining the U21s during their Premier League Cup group stage contest against West Bromwich Albion U21s on Tuesday night, as although they were hammered 5-1, he was on target with a close range header from Joe Gbode’s cross in the first half, to celebrate a first Luton goal since February.
With Ali Al-Hamadi potentially missing after injuring his quad while away on international duty with Iraq, then speaking about having the former Stoke City attacker available once more, Wilshere said: “We’ve been really happy with Browny, we probably didn't expect him to come back this quick. He played with the 21s, we watched the game as coaches and he was good. I’ve got a lot of experience with that injury and sometimes I remember when I was coming back and how Arsene (Wenger, Arsenal manager) would manage it and sometimes it just feels like the right moment.
"I spoke to him and said ‘it feels like the right moment for you to come back into the squad,’ and I could see it in his eyes. He’s been training really well, credit to him and the medical team that he’s back this early as we didn’t expect him to be as sharp as he’s been in training. It’s good to have him back, it’s good for him to feel like he’s involved.
"It’s good for him to feel the love from the fans when he came on as you can see the response. It’s not always easy when you come on against a team in low block, you have to be creative and make something happen, but he’s someone we’re looking forward to having back as he’s a quality player. We still need to be patient with Browny though as I know this injury and I know what it takes.”