Luton manager Matt Bloomfield says he is “really pleased” to have Teden Mengi still in his squad after speculation linking the defender with a move to Burnley on deadline day.
Mengi, who has represented England at under-21 level and impressed for Luton in the Premier League after his move from Manchester United, attracted interest last summer too, with reports out linking him to Torino in Italy, but nothing came of it.
The defender has missed the start of the League One season through an ankle injury picked up in pre-season, but on transfer deadline day the Daily Telegraph reported that a move to Turf Moor was being talked about.
“There was a possibility,” Bloomfield admitted when asked if Mengi could have left Luton. “Ted’s another player who’s played for England under-21s and played very well in the Premier League two seasons ago. There’s been interest in Ted but that didn’t materialise. So we’re really pleased to still have him here.
“Ted’s been fantastic in pre-season when he played. Unfortunately, he’s been injured for a little while, but he’s now back on the grass and training within the group. So yeah, we’re looking forward to welcoming him back into the group as soon as we can.”
Luton did sell centre half Mark McGuinness to Sheffield United on transfer deadline day, while allowing fellow defender Tom Holmes to move to Rotherham on loan for the season, so Bloomfield insisted Mengi can play a key role for the Hatters once fully fit.
“Absolutely, yeah, absolutely. Ted’s been fantastic for us all pre-season, he’s trained really well. I had no issues with Ted at all. Again, conducted himself impeccably. There’s been interest in Ted, but it didn’t materialise. So yeah, we hope to have him back amongst the group because he’s a fantastic player.”
Despite losing Mark McGuinness, which Bloomfield said Town had anticipated and planned for, bringing in Nigel Lonwijk on loan from Wolves and signing Kal Naismith permanently, the manager remains confident in his defensive options, which have the meanest defence in League One so far with four clean sheets in six games.
“We’re pleased with the group we’ve got together,” he said. “We hope to have Hakeem back sooner rather than later, although it’s a little way away. Obviously, Mads we hope to have back very, very soon. Nigel was brought here to play in central defence, although he’s had to fill in at wing back on a number of occasions because of the fitness of the boys we were waiting to get ready there. So yeah, we’re pleased with the numbers we’ve got there. As long as we can keep the important guys fit, then we’re pleased.”
