Luton boss Rob Edwards has hailed “class” Luke Berry after the midfielder penned a new deal that helps keep the Hatters’ “heartbeat”.
The 30-year-old has been at the club since 2017 when they were in League Two and has been with them on their journey to the Premier League.
He’s one of a crop of stars that have continued to step up with Luton along with Dan Potts and James Shea, with only Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu who has been at the club longer.
Berry has carved out a reputation as a goalscoring midfielder with 24 strikes for Luton and a penalty in the Championship play-off final shootout that helped seal promotion to the Premier League, which he has said is the best achievement of his career.
While Town are busy in the transfer market trying to add to their promotion-winning squad to better equip them for a campaign in the top flight, boss Edwards is keen to keep a core of the squad that has helped the Hatters to four promotions in nine remarkable years.
“He knows the club inside out and we’ve got to stay true to ourselves, we have to keep that heartbeat, keep that core of people who have helped us get to where we’ve got to,” said the manager.
“These lads who have won several promotions with us, they are special and we’ve got to celebrate that. He thoroughly deserves to get a crack in the Premier League and I love him to bits. He’s class, a brilliant man who brings so much to the club.”
Berry is one of four players offered new deals and is the first to be confirmed, with negotiations ongoing with Mpanzu, Amari’i Bell and Tom Lockyer.
But on convincing Berry to sign on again, Edwards told the club’s website: “I’m delighted to get Luke signed on again. He is someone who has just grown on me and grown on me the more we’ve been here. He knows this as well. He’s just got better and better.
“His availability for us has been brilliant and from his last-minute equaliser against Millwall, which was a really good goal, to his penalty in the play-off final, I think he’s just shown real moments of quality.
“When he came on early for Pelly up at Sheffield United, I thought he was outstanding and he backed that up against Bristol City, then away at Sunderland as well. He’s just performed really well, whenever we’ve asked him to, and he’s a really valuable member of the squad.”
Speaking of the manager, who replaced Nathan Jones in November and then steered Town to the top flight, Berry said: “Since Rob came in, he’s been brilliant with me personally, and along with Richie and Trolls they’ve had a real impact on the squad. They’ve not transformed it from what was happening previously, but have changed a few bits that have really made us a better team, and that showed in the second half of the season.”
