Luton boss Graeme Jones dedicated Saturday’s first clean sheet of the Championship campaign to goalkeeper Simon Sluga, who was dropped for the a 3-0 victory over Bristol City.
The club record signing had played every game of the league season before the international break, but his two costly errors against Derby County saw him consigned to a place on the bench, with James Shea given the nod at the weekend.
Last term’s Golden Glove winner, was outstanding between the sticks on his Championship debut, preserving a two-goal lead – after superb strikes from Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu and Harry Cornick – with a fingertip save from City’s new Spanish signing Rodri.
Ashley Williams then put through his own net late on to make the scoreline even more impressive.
But on the shutout, Jones said: “I’m sure James will be the same, that clean sheet is for Simon Sluga as he’s taken an awful lot of stick.
“He’s a new player to this country, he supported James today, but James Shea was outstanding, absolutely outstanding.”
Sluga made a beeline to Shea after the final whistle to congratulate him on the pitch and Jones added: “James supported Simon 100 per cent with no complaint, and I’ve seen the same thing from Simon.
“Simon Sluga will come again, I can assure you, but as I’ve kept saying, we are so grateful to have James Shea at this football club.
“His performance today was perfect, his decision making was one of the best I’ve seen as a goalkeeper.”
The Hatters boss also hailed the victory and his side’s best performance this season, saying: “I think that’s four months’ work for the players and staff, and that was the exhibition of four months work, the evidence. I think the tactical aspect is one thing and then the application and the courage and the character of the players to execute it was really, really satisfying.
“I am especially pleased for Sonny Bradley and Matty Pearson, who have been thrown more challenges, more demands by me than any other players at the football club and they have stood up to it. They have showed courage, they have responded always, it has been really difficult for them at times and then when you eventually break through those barriers you grow as players and I think you can see that. I think the two boys were getting more and more frustrated at not getting a clean sheet.
“But with the greatest respect we haven’t had a defensive midfield player out on the pitch for two months and I think that was a key factor.
“Martin (Cranie) gives you great flexibility, so there’s two shapes in that system, that’s the first time I have been able to do that, if you remember, Martin was playing right-back for us, and then we signed Luke Bolton and James Bree after Martin got injured, so it gives you great flexibility, as does Glen Rea.
“It was just a pity that both of them were injured at the same time, so now we are benefiting from that option.”
