Rob Edwards knows it would be an “incredible story” for Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu to reach the Premier League with Luton but the Luton manager has stressed that the Hatters have to make it happen first.
Town reaching the top flight would be a history-making feat, less than a decade after they were in the non-league.
Mpanzu was signed from West Ham United initially on loan and then permanently in 2014, which was the season that the Hatters won the Blue Square Premier and returned to the Football League after a five-years in the Conference.
Consecutive promotions from League Two to the Championship followed under Nathan Jones, who established the club in the second-tier, just missing out in last term’s play-off semi-finals to Huddersfield.
The Welshman left in November to join Premier League Southampton and Edwards took over, tweaking a winning formula to fire Town to third in the league and then a semi-final victory over Sunderland to reach the so-called richest game in world football at Wembley against Coventry this Saturday.
There’s a Cinderella story awaiting the club, as well as Mpanzu, who would be the first man to play in all five divisions for the same club.
Edwards said: “I need to stress that, it would be an incredible story. I know there are people that have gone from the National League and gone and done incredible things in the Premier League, but to do it with one club would be a great story.
“And if, if, we’re able to do it, there’s not one person I’d be more happy for. He’s such an important person around the place, an incredible man and he deserves it, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to do it, we’ve got to go and make it happen, but it would be great for him.”
Successive managers have hailed Mpanzu’s impact on Luton, with his name one of the first on the team-sheet as he’s been transformed from a central defender into one of the best midfielders in the Championship.
Edwards said: “You hear him before you see him and then you do see him quite often if he’s in his purple suit.
“He’s just a brilliant guy, whether we’ve won, lost, drawn, it’s hot, it’s cold, a miserable Monday morning or whatever, he’s the same and you need people like that in football as it is a pretty unique sport, business, whatever it is these days that we’re in.
“There’s not much quite like it and he keeps you going, and he drives you and this group of lads, they do drive themselves, but he’s so important, he’s like the heartbeat of the group, as he’s been here for so long.
“(He’s a) brilliant guy, really, really honest, so hard working and has just stepped up and stepped up and stepped up. To do one more level would be incredible.”
Asked if Mpanzu will be wearing his purple suit to Wembley, Edwards joked: “He wanted to wear shorts, he’s got great legs hasn’t he? He’s got big muscly legs, but we’ll stick to our tracksuits and try to keep it really normal.”
