A Cristiano Ronaldo spectacular against Juventus is the only other time Luton boss Graeme Jones has seen fans clap a rival goalscorer, after former Hatter James Justin was afforded the reaction for netting on his Leicester debut last night.
Town went down 4-0 at home in the Carabao Cup third round to the high-flying Premier League outfit, with the clash serving as Justin’s debut for the Foxes, having swapped Luton for City in the summer.
The 21-year-old scored in the 44th minute, converting a top-class Youri Tielemens assist and, while he didn’t celebrate against his hometown team, the Hatters fans burst into applause and sang “he’s one of our own”.
Asked if he’d even seen that type of reaction before, Jones said: “Not live. I can think of maybe Cristiano Ronaldo for Real Madrid at Juventus when he scored the overhead kick. I remember Juventus supporters standing up and applauding him and, probably, that’s why he signed for them. I think it was a special thing.
“But Luton supporters, tonight, showed again their real understanding of football. I think their reading of the game was very fair, but also, to appreciate James the way we did, I think it just shows the class that we’ve got here.”
And the Hatters boss admitted it was just Town fans that appreciated Justin’s goal.
“It’s a strange thing because he scores a second goal against (James) Shea and I think our bench wanted to clap him as well, just out of appreciation for what he’s done for the football club.”
