Wilshere expects striking duo to leave Kenilworth Road

Luton boss Jack Wilshere expects forward duo Lasse Nordas and Jerry Yates to be on the move ahead of the transfer window closing as they both seek out regular first team football this season.

Nordas, 24, has endured a tough time of it since heading to England, snapped up from Norwegian side Tromso back in January 2025 when Luton were still a Championship outfit. Barely featuring as the Hatters were relegated to League One, it appeared like the former Bodo Glimt youngsters might be on the verge of breaking into the team under previous manager Matt Bloomfield last term, starting four out of eight league games and opening his account in the 3-0 win over Burton Albion, also netting against Barnet in the Vertu Trophy, before there was a change at the helm.

Following the appointment of Wilshere, Nordas managed just two starts, one more in the Vertu Trophy, netting twice during a 4-0 victory over Exeter and the FA Cup trip to Fleetwood, as he was then loaned out to Dutch Eredivisie side Heerenveen in January. There, the ex-Norway U21 international caught the eye, scoring six goals in 16 matches, for the Super Frisians, but hasn't featured at all for Luton since the club returned for pre-season last month.

With Wilshere adding West Ham forward Callum Marshall last week, it is increasingly likely that Nordas, who has scored four goals in 27 appearances for Town, will leave Bedfordshire, as it was reported that both Polish side Raków Częstochowa and Danish outfit AGF Fodbold were interested in acquiring Nordas’ services.

Asked if a move away was imminent, Wilshere said: “We’ve got three nines (Nahki Wells, Devante Cole and Marshall), two that were involved last season and we’ve just brought in another one. So for Lasse, Lasse is training, is working, he’ll probably want to move on for his own career and to get playing again. I know he went on loan last season and he played games, when you’re a player that gives you the feeling that you want to come back and if you’re not going to play games here then you want to move on. I’m not sure how close we are to anything, but potentially yeah.”

It’s the same for Yates who was hailed as Town’s marquee signing of the summer last term, as having joined from Swansea City, he was paraded on the pitch to supporters prior to the opening night 1-0 win over AFC Wimbledon. However, he struggled to get going, as despite starting six out of the first seven league games of the campaign, only netted twice in that time.

Once Wilshere came in, Yates only began five league matches under the former England and Arsenal star, scoring twice in 22 outings, although four goals in the Vertu Trophy pushed him up to seven strikes in 29 matches. He was allowed out on loan to Championship side Sheffield Wednesday in January, where he scored four times in 18 second tier matches for the Owls, but since returning, then like Nordas, hasn’t been included in any match-day squads.

On his future, Wilshere added: “It’s the same with Yatesy. Again, Yatesy, a top guy who even last season when I first came in, I felt he was a bit unfortunate at times, where if one or two of his opportunities had dropped and gone in, it might have gone different for him. But he went out in January, played a lot of games, and again he’ll have the same feeling that he’ll want to continue playing games and that might be difficult here.”