Townsend declares it was one of the 'easiest decisions' to pen new Luton contract

Attacker Andros Townsend described it was one of the ‘easiest decisions’ he has made when penning his new long term deal with the Hatters this week.

The 32-year-old had been signed on a free transfer in October after spending 18 months out of the game due a serious cruciate ligament injury when at Everton, which saw him released by the Toffees in the summer. With a move to Burnley falling through at the last moment, and clubs all over the world unwilling to take a chance on the England international, he had feared his playing days were over, instead looking to concentrate on his punditry work.

However, Luton then gave him a way back into the game, offering the ex-Spurs and Crystal Palace winger a short-term contract, and with Townsend showing he was clearly over any injury worries, playing 11 times in the Premier League, a lengthier stint at Kenilworth Road was confirmed on Wednesday.

When the news was made public, writing on Twitter, the midfielder said: “One of the easiest decisions I’ve ever made, extremely grateful to Gary, Rob and all his staff for taking the chance on me when no one else would and their continued faith and trust in me long term! @LutonTown #2026.”

Asked what has been the main reason behind Townsend’s impressive comeback to top flight football, Luton chief Rob Edwards said: “Himself. He’s got an amazing attitude. I know I’ve said this a lot, he’s got some determination, he’s very, very driven, really focused, he works tirelessly on himself and making sure he’s in the best condition possible.

"Then he’s gone and performed really, really well and he deserves it. We’re delighted to make it longer term, as he’s made a huge impact on the club since he’s been here in a really positive way. I think everybody can see that, supporters love him already, he’s made a great impression on them as well, so I’m really, really pleased.”

Townsend has started eight of Luton’s last nine Premier League games, the last one coming against Chelsea on Saturday when the Hatters saw their attempts to make it three successive wins ended by a 3-2 defeat. Having come into the game in such good form, the attacker felt there had been a result there for his side, saying: “We expect to take points, if it was at the start of the season it might be a different story but we expect.

“We should have got points against Arsenal, should have got points against (Manchester) City, we came here expecting three wins on the spin. I know that’s not easy, we fell short, but we’re definitely expecting to win, especially at Kenilworth Road. We expect to win every game and we believe we’ll win every game, but we just fell short and we’ve got to learn from it and move on.”

However, the forward could reflect on what was a terrific Christmas period, as Luton defeated Newcastle United 1-0 and then triumphed 3-2 at Sheffield United on Boxing Day, as saying: “It’s definitely been positive, to get back-to-back wins in the Premier League is always difficult, so we’re delighted with that. We’re coming into this game expecting to get something from this game, so we didn’t do that and we’re disappointed.

"But we have to learn you never lose, you always learn and we learn from today and we take it into Burnley which is a massive, massive game for us and we look to get more points.”

With Luton now having come back from 2-1 down at Sheffield United to triumph, plus 2-0 at Nottingham Forest to register a stoppage time point, and then going so close from three goals down against Mauricio Pochettino’s side, that can only bode well for Townsend, as he continued: “That’s the most important thing, when you’re down the bottom it’s knowing when you go behind you can bring it back and we’ve done that time and time again since I’ve been here.

"We’ve come back from losing positions, or almost got back from losing positions, so we have to learn, take that into Burnley, not make the same mistakes and make sure we pick up some points.”

The fact that Town can do that is due to their increased confidence upfront, as they have now scored in six Premier League games in a row, netting 13 goals in those games, with Elijah Adebayo up to five for the season. Townsend too had his first Luton strike in the recent 1-0 win over Newcastle, as on the Hatters’ increased potency, he added: “At the start of the season we were creating a lot of chances, but weren’t putting them away. Now, whether it be Carlton Morris, Eli, whoever’s upfront, in the wide areas, we’re carrying a goal threat and that’s so important. That’s going to carry us through, hopefully to safety.”