Elijah Adebayo has confirmed his departure from Luton Town after posting an emotional farewell message on social media.
The striker, who was one of several players offered a new contract by the Hatters following the end of last season, shared a highlights video from his five-and-a-half years at Kenilworth Road on Instagram with the caption: “This is as far as it goes…” before the club officially announced his departure.
Keeper James Shea was the first current Hatter to comment on the video, saying: “It’s been a pleasure my man!”, while former Luton wing-back Alfie Doughty, now at Millwall, posted: “Club legend”.
In a second social media post, Adebayo wrote: “Wow, where do I even start? It’s been some journey.
“From the moment I arrived in 2021, I felt at home. The staff, my team-mates and especially the fans welcomed me straight away, and I’ll always be grateful for that. Pulling on the Luton shirt has been an honour every single time. We failed together, we achieved the impossible together, we lived out our most wild dreams together. To everyone at the club, thank you.
“From supporting me throughout my lowest moments, to celebrating our highest of highs. We are, and always will be, family. To the fans, thank you. You always welcomed me as one of your own, and I couldn’t be more thankful of the journey we went on together. Together we proved magic can happen. Thank you for everything. Magic Man.”
The striker’s exit brings the curtain down on a largely memorable spell that saw him become one of the most important players of Luton’s modern era as they reached the Premier League in 2023. It was just marauding run at Wembley that set up Jordan Clark for the memorable opening goal against Coventry in the Championship play-off final.
But the the 28-year-old has suffered serious injury problems that have kept him out for all but two games of last season. So the last Luton fans saw the striker was when he came on as a 75th minute substitute in a 3-2 League One win over Exeter in March.
Having just returned from 11 months out with a knee injury, three days earlier, the forward got injured again, this time his hip, and the news followed shortly after that his season was over.
After Adebayo made the announcement on his Instagram page, the club followed up with confirmation of the end of his time as a Hatter, writing: “There have been six words which have been on the tip of every Town fan’s tongue for past six seasons.
“‘He’s magic you know, Elijah Adebayo’.
“However, today we say goodbye to a man we took to our hearts ever since he arrived late on transfer deadline night on 1st February 2021, as we confirm that the striker will leave us following the expiry of his contract.”
In another video posted on the Luton Town social media channels, featuring highlights on his Hatters career, Adebayo signed off saying: “Thank you. I’ve loved every single moment that I’ve been here and I wouldn’t change it for anything else.”
Signed from Walsall in February 2021, Adebayo quickly established himself as a fans’ favourite, playing a key role in the club’s rise from the Championship to the Premier League.
His physical presence, tireless work-rate and knack for scoring important goals made him indispensable under both Nathan Jones and Rob Edwards and he formed a formidable strike partnership with Carlton Morris.
Perhaps his finest individual moment came during Luton’s first ever Premier League campaign when he scored the club’s first ever Premier League hat-trick in a 4-0 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion, while he also netted crucial goals in the Championship promotion-winning season.
In total, Adebayo leaves having scored 47 goals in 184 games.
Despite his final campaign ending in frustration after just his second appearance, manager Jack Wilshere had made clear he wanted to keep the forward at the club, with the frontman among those offered fresh terms alongside Clark and Liam Walsh.
While Clark and Walsh have both since signed new long-term contracts, Adebayo’s departure leaves Wilshere searching for further attacking reinforcements ahead of Luton’s promotion push in League One, with the club already active in the transfer market this summer.
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