Adebayo was ‘a mile off’ as Jones explains how injuries ‘caught up’ with Luton

Nathan Jones admitted that Elijah Adebayo was “a mile off” peak fitness as Luton’s promotion dream ended at Huddersfield last night, with the manager left to wonder what could have been if his injury list wasn’t so crippling. 

The top scorer was thrown on at the death last night with the Hatters chasing an equaliser to take the play-off semi-final to extra time. 

Adebayo had been out of action since suffering a hamstring issue in the last knockings of the 1-1 Championship draw against Blackpool almost a month ago. 

The 17-goal ace had been undergoing cryotherapy to try and speed his recovery, but though a place on the bench at the John Smith’s Stadium offered some hope, it was clear that Adebayo could barely run.

It was a gamble that didn’t pay off, but was the only option Town had to try and salvage the semi-final, with no more attacking options left. 

Carlos Mendes Gomes had already been introduced after Jordan Rhodes’ 82nd minute winner, but the former Morecambe man hadn’t played for two months, while Admiral Muskwe had been lost to injury ahead of the second leg, as had midfielder Henri Lansbury. 

They joined James Shea, Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu, Luke Berry, Fred Onyedinma and Gabriel Osho, who all suffered season ending injuries.

And it became apparent that Adebayo probably should’ve joined them, as Jones admitted: “He was a mile off. We just thought, we need a goal and we can load the box, but he can’t sprint. 

“It’s a gamble we took, but when you look around, Admiral Muskwe got injured, we’ve lost Henri Lansbury and you look at the bench and we’ve got defenders to put on or players who haven’t played. 

“We didn’t have that game-changer to come on a really give us that impetus. We’ve got eight top athletes injured, so it limited us and that’s caught up with us a little bit.” 

Jones added: “I’ve not been able to pick my best 11, with game-changers for two months or ten weeks now. 

“So, the last 15 games, we’ve been patching up. To continue that, to finish where we have, I’m just so proud. 

“Let’s not complain about the injuries. Let’s congratulate Huddersfield, they’ve been magnificent all season, fair play to them, but let’s talk about us. We’ve been outstanding and I’m so proud of them. 

“Everyone has taken this but it’s just raw now and emotional and it’s tough to take.” 

On the volume of injuries in recent months, Jones said: “It’s the way it is, it’s the way we play. We’re aggressive, front-footed, we go after everyone, so sometimes you pick up things.

“We’ve been unfortunate. We’ve had six goalkeepers and the injury thing has been quite phenomenal, but we’ll be stronger for this. 

“Tomorrow I’ll be back in work and ready to recruit so that we are having another crack at this in a year’s time.