Luton manager Graeme Jones was delighted with Izzy Brown’s first full game in two years as the Chelsea loan forward impressed in the 3-0 Carabao Cup win at Cardiff on Tuesday night.
The former England youth international joined the Hatters on transfer deadline day on a season-long loan, hoping to break into the first team and build his career back up after an anterior cruciate knee ligament injury kept him sidelined for 18 months.
Brown starred on his debut in the 3-1 Carabao Cup first round victory over Ipswich with a dazzling 65-minute display, but had to settle for substitute cameos in the Championship defeats to West Brom and Sheffield Wednesday.
But the 22-year-old got his first full game for the Hatters at Cardiff and he was excellent again, particularly in the first half, when Luton kept hold of the ball for 78 per cent of the time.
“I’ve got no doubt in Izzy’s quality,” boss Jones said afterwards, adding: “That’s his first 90 minutes for two years. Izzy’s a Premier League player. It’s what he is.
“He was a little bit frustrated not getting any minutes at the weekend and I told him it’s about the football club and ‘you need minutes under your belt’.
“When you haven’t played for two years, you can’t just turn it on. But I thought he was excellent. I thought he tired with 20 minutes to go but he found a way of still being in the game and contributing, doing his job off the ball.
“Those are the lessons that you need to learn in football matches, because that’s how you get back to your best. The Carabao Cup’s been superb, not just for Izzy, but for lots of our players.”
Luton were last night drawn at home to Leicester City in the third round of the Carabao Cup.
