Wilshere believes Luton fans will see an even better Kasey Palmer after early arrival

Luton boss Jack Wilshere expects Town supporters will see an even better Kasey Palmer when the League One campaign begins in just under a month.

It’s fair to say the old version of Palmer was pretty good too, as having joined on loan from Hull City in January, he produced some truly eye-catching displays, quickly becoming a fans' favourite amongst Hatters followers. The Jamaican international then really made his mark when scoring a wonderful goal at Doncaster Rovers, which led to the most prolific spell of his entire career, scoring eight goals in just 12 outings, which increased the clamour from the Kenilworth Road faithful for him to come back.

That wish came true last week, as the former Coventry and Bristol City player left the Tigers and headed to Bedfordshire on a full-time basis for an undisclosed fee. When Palmer originally signed, he had only played once for his parent club in nearly three months, which meant he often had to be taken off before the final whistle by Wilshere, as from his 20 third tier appearances, completed 90 minutes on just three occasions.

Now having him for a full pre-season, then the Town chief insists that Palmer, who scored in the 5-0 friendly win at Hitchin Town on Saturday, ca only attain even loftier heights for Luton, saying: “We did some running and he had a bit of banter with me and said he should have signed on deadline day, but I think we’ll see a better Kasey for that because he knows who we are and how we play. There are some clear things we need to improve on and we get to do that with him now, while also improving his fitness.

"It (the deal) was something we’ve been working on probably since March, April time, when I spoke to him and he made it clear to me his desire to stay here. Ultimately his performances on the pitch were what convinced us to bring him back, the influence he has on the group, the moments he has in a game where he can just turn a game on its head. It’s exciting that we did it early enough as well to get him really fit, really hungry and ready for the start of the season.”

One thing that Wilshere will look for Palmer to improve on even more is his goal tally, despite the regularity with which he was on the scoresheet in the final few months of the season. Asked if he thought such a streak had been capable for a player who had scored just 21 times in his previous decade before joining the Hatters, and what they did to push him to achieve such figures, Wilshere continued: “There was a time last season where I think Walshy (Liam Walsh) and Sav (George Saville) were injured and he played as a six, Blackpool at home, he was outstanding.

"Obviously there’s slightly more responsibility defensively when you’re a six and he can definitely do that which is nice, but I think you get the best Kasey Palmer when he has a little bit more freedom, when he can find little pockets around the final third and it was his most prolific season. His ability to finish, his striking ability, we worked on him with. As when you find yourself getting into so many dangerous areas, he already sees a pass and his decision-making is excellent, but actually finishing, he improved a lot last season.

"So again he’s set the bar now and he needs to keep reaching that level and pushing it higher as when you have a player that has Kasey’s ability, you often see how good he is on the ball, how much better are we going to make him on the ball? How much better are we going to make him technically?

"Technically he’s at a top, top level, so then it’s about working with him on his positioning, about arriving in the box, trying to make him more dangerous. He can definitely improve out of possession, which he knows, I’m always on to him about it, but he definitely made big steps with that last year as well. So that’s why I thought it was really important to get it done early and credit to all the guys for getting it done.”

Palmer himself knows he needs to put the work in ahead of the season-opener against Reading on August 15, which comes a week after Town head to Gillingham in the Carabao Cup, stating: “He (Wilshere) says that all the time to be fair, that’s the one thing that me and Jack don’t get on with, is the working hard! But it’s pre-season now so I’ll try and get as fit as I can.

“The game has changed, but when you play under a manager like Jack who himself loved the ball and loved having the ball, it helps as he understands it. He was that player who wants to get on the ball and have touches, but he understands that you have to do the other side of the game he’s big on as well.”

Having some top players around him will only help Palmer show even more than he had done last term, especially with the news that both Jordan Clark and Liam Walsh penned new deals to remain at Kenilworth Road. On whether that was something the midfielder enquired about before signing on the dotted line himself, Wilshere added: “Yes and I think that’s fair enough.

"You want players to drive that, to push you, to push me, to push the club, push standards higher. I think Walshy and Clicker were important to him as they are important to me. Also with Walshy and Clicker, they are really important to Kasey as they understand him, but they also do a lot of work to try and get Kasey on the ball, to try and attract different players so he’s free.

"We’re happy with those three, but we’ve still got some other players, Sav played a bit with Kasey last season, we want Sverre (Sandal) to step up this season and show he can break into that midfield. We’ve also got Jake Richards who played a lot off the right last season, Gideon Kodua played off the left, so we’ve got a lot of players in those positions who will be fighting for competition, but it’s only good.”