Toon midfielder happy to stay with Luton

The 20-year-old, who has made 19 appearances in all competitions for the Hatters this term, sees his loan deal expire on January 7.

Gilliead took a while to break into the side after joining on deadline day, but has now started eight of Town’s past 10 league games, including the 1-0 defeat against Colchester on Boxing Day.

Hatters boss Nathan Jones has declared his intentions to extend Gilliead’s stay with the club, and when asked if he wanted to remain at Luton until May, the youngster said: “Yes, I’m here and I’m playing, I’m starting most weeks.

“At the start I wasn’t and was a bit frustrated, but now I am and I’m enjoying it.

“I love it, I get on with all the lads, get on with all the staff and playing 90 minutes every week.

“I’m learning all the time and developing as a player, so I don’t see why not.

“I’ve been in contact with Newcastle and been in contact with my agent, I think they’ve been in contact with the club as well.

“I think everything’s just getting talked about at the moment and just getting ironed out so it’s just seeing what’s going to happen.”

On just how he’s developed as player during his time at Kenilworth Road on and off the pitch, Gilliead continued: “Moving away from home, I’ve had to grow up a little bit.

“I’m not playing as an out and out wide man which is probably my position, I’m playing inside a bit.

“So I’m learning a lot more about the way to play the inside role.

“In training he’s (Jones got us doing a lot of different things, coming inside and going outside, movement, just trying to develop an all-round game for me.”

Long term though, Gilliead sees himself as a wideman first and foremost, as he said: “That’s probably the position I am.

“Sometimes when we go 4-4-2 I enjoy playing out there, I just like playing on that right hand side or left hand side and getting isolated one v one.”

One thing Gilliead wants to improve is his goal ratio, netting just once so far, that in a Checkatrade Trophy tie with West Brom U23s.

He added: “I need to get more goals, need to get more assists, but I think playing a bit deeper and a bit narrower, that’s kind of brought me a bit further down the pitch, not as close to goal.

“But no excuses, I should be getting more goals and more assists.

“The manager and all the staff are telling me to shoot more, I just need to add that to my game and think if I do add that to my game, I’ll score more goals.

“Everyone wants to score goals, everyone likes scoring, there’s three or four players who are chipping in with the goals, but everyone else would and probably could chip in with the goals.”