Luton Town boss Matt Bloomfield says Christian Chigozie “showed” he was ready for senior football and believes the 17-year-old’s debut can help inspire other academy hopefuls to follow in his footsteps.
As a Luton schoolboy the defender made the bench for two Premier League games against Arsenal and Manchester City while he was studying for his GCSE’s at the Chiltern Academy secondary school next door to the Hatters’ training headquarters, The Brache. Then he had to be given special permission from the school to make history as the youngest player to be part of a Luton squad in Premier League.
Then on Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup clash at Coventry, after the three-match ban handed to Christ Makosso for violent conduct, Chigozie was finally handed his full debut by Bloomfield.
The Spanish-born ace, who moved to England when he was six, became the first Hatters academy ace that the manager has given the step-up to, though he was joined on the pitch in Coventry by fellow youth team graduates Zack Nelson and Josh Phillips as Town ended the tie with a youthful line-up that also included 18-year-old summer signing Jake Richards. West Ham loanee Gideon Kodua, 20, also started the game for his maiden match for the club.
“We’ve got lots of young players that are in our squad, maybe not come through the system, but we do have lots of young players and to give Christian his opportunity was really pleasing and to see him grab it,” Bloomfield said, having kept the decision a secret from Chigozie until two hours before kick-off, so he didn’t overthink it.
“Young players are ready when they’re ready and you can’t overpush that if they’re not quite there. Christian has shown some really positive signs in pre-season and we felt that he was ready. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough as the old adage goes and Chigsy certainly showed that. It’ll be nice to have some more opportunities to give him when the time is right. We can’t force it upon him.”
Bloomfield praised Chigozie’s character and leadership, qualities that have made him stand out in the club’s youth ranks, saying: “One thing that we love about Christian is the fact that he’s so level-headed. He is a real leader amongst the under-18s and the under-21s and always conducts himself with real maturity.”
Asked what a young player can do, after earning their debut, to kick on and try to build their career in a senior squad, the manager said: “First off, don’t let it change you. Keep doing what has got you that opportunity in the first instance and keep knocking on the door. Keep being ready because you never know when the opportunity is going to arise.”
And Bloomfield believes Chigozie’s breakthrough can inspire other academy hopefuls, as Nelson and Joe Johnson’s development inspire him.
“I think it’s really important for the other younger players to see someone make that step, to see that it’s achievable, it’s not too far away. I hope that by Christian making his debut and grabbing it like he did, other young players will see that it’s there and if you’re performing to the level like he has and conduct yourself in the way like he has, then we’ll be willing to give you an opportunity when the time is right.”
Bloomfield hailed the club’s youth set-up, crediting the coaches headed up by former Town striker and head of academy Paul Benson, saying: “They’re top people. Absolutely top people and they’ve done a great job here over a number of years as their predecessors have as well, bringing players through. We would love to be a club that keep developing and keep giving opportunities when the moment arises.
“Obviously we’ve invested in a few younger players as well, from abroad that we’re trying to develop and trying to turn into assets for our football club and give opportunities in the first team as well. So we can’t clog up that moment of bringing them all in the team at the same time because we need to get results. So it’s about using the right players at the right time, dipping them in when it’s right and taking them out when it’s right. But we absolutely believe that we want to have a conveyor belt and a pathway. [to the first team]”
Reflecting on his own experience as a youth team prospect at his boyhood club Ipswich Town, Bloomfield said: “When I was a young player, Darren Bent and Darren Ambrose broke into the first team and I was probably in that next batch that was chasing and trying to get that opportunity. Once or twice it looked like I would make my debut and I had a couple of injuries. Eventually I did, in a cup game we lost, and then another opportunity didn’t come.
“So some of it is timing. You want to be involved in a good performance. Unfortunately for me, it didn’t go my way. We got beat in a cup game and the second opportunity never arose and I had to move on to create a career for myself. The good thing for Christian is that even though we lost, it came in a very good performance at times and he came away with lots of positives to his name.
“So you can only do as you can in those moments and leave with a positive reflection on yourself, which he absolutely did. For me, my dream at my boyhood club didn’t quite become a reality. I made one appearance and had to move on to create a career and everyone’s pathway is different.
“We would love to give as many boys an opportunity as we can and I think the Vertu Motors [Trophy] will give us an opportunity to do that as well. And when they’re ready, they will be able to step up into the first team. Whilst there’s other young players and expectational results, it’s always going to be a balancing act. But we’ll do that the best we possibly can.”
