Town striker in line to face Rovers as Luton chief pleased Wells won't be away

Hatters boss Jack Wilshere has stated that striker Devante Cole will be in the squad for tomorrow’s FA Cup first round clash against Forest Green Rovers.

The 31-year-old looked like he had done enough to force his way into Wilshere’s reckoning recently, having scored his first League One goal for the club against Wycombe Wanderers, also netting in the Jersey Mike’s Trophy group stage matches against both Ipswich Town U21s and Colchester United, to make it three for the campaign.

Having come on late in the 2-1 defeat to MK Dons, Cole was then an unused substitute in the home wins over Barnsley and Leicester City, before dropping out of the squad for the third tier games with Doncaster Rovers, Peterborough United and Huddersfield Town, as Callum Marshall and Nahki Wells were preferred instead. Asked whether he was injured, or in contention to play in the FA Cup, Wilshere said: “Yes, he’s available.

"He’s trained well. It’s been tough for Devante, I understand that better than anyone. I’ve been in a situation like that as a player where you come in, you score a few goals and then you’re out of the squad. I’ve tried to stay in constant communication with D and just reiterate the importance of training well and staying ready. Fair play to him, credit to him, he’s doing that and he’ll be in the squad tomorrow.”

One of the reasons that Cole has found it so hard to feature is due to the form of Wells, the experienced forward having netted eight goals in 16 matches so far this term. It looked like he was going to be sidelined when going off in the first half of the 3-1 victory over Doncaster recently, only to recover and be back on the bench at Peterborough United, then starting and getting 85 minutes of the 1-1 draw at his old side Huddersfield on Tuesday night.

With Wells vital to the Hatters’ promotion hopes this term, the former Bristol City and QPR attacker has declined the opportunity to go away with Bermuda during the upcoming international break, opting to prioritise the Hatters and spending time with his family instead. It was something Wilshere was glad to see, adding: “I would always respect whatever Nahki wanted. He went away with his national team in the last break, and I trust Nahki so much because of his experience and his understanding of his body.

"He probably feels that we know how important he is as well and he wants to keep that going. He’s had a really strong start to the season. Knowing Nahki, he will know that’s just the start. He wants to push on here and the best way to do that is by staying available. I’m so happy that is the case. We have to get the balance right now for every player, including Nahki, the time we give them to rest and recover and also the work we get into them.”