New Luton Town new signing Hakeem Odoffin will miss the first few months of the season and will undergo an operation to correct a medical issue that has prevented him from featuring in any of the club’s pre-season fixtures.
The versatile 27-year-old joined the Hatters earlier this month from Rotherham United but has yet to make an appearance in this summer’s friendly schedule, with just Saturday’s home clash aggainst Premier League Tottenham to go before the League One season starts next week against AFC Wimbledon.
The club has now confirmed the reason for the delay in Odoffin’s involvement is after an MRI scan in his medical flagged an unexpected non-musculoskeletal issue.
Hatters boss Matt Bloomfield told The Lutonian: “There was a medical issue that was flagged up in his medical. It’s not a serious illness. I don’t want to start bringing an issue to something that’s not, but he’ll just need a minor procedure to make sure he’s ready for competitive football.
“So, unfortunately for Haks, and unfortunately for us, he’s going to be missing for a couple of months. It was part of the negotiation between the club and his agent. We understood the situation and we were in a position to make a decision whether we support the boy through this and know that we’ve got a real good person, a real good character, a real good player the other side, or we walk away from it.
“We believed at that point that through the negotiation between the club and the agent, it was the right thing to keep pursuing. So we’ll support him through this process and we can’t wait to have him available.”
Some fans were critical of last summer’s transfer window for signing injury-prone players, but when asked what he would say to supporters who question why the club has again signed a player who isn’t available to play, Bloomfield was quick to defend the decision.
“He’s not injured,” he said, adding: “He’s unavailable to play. I get that, and I understand why the questions would arise, but it’s something we asked ourselves and we discussed internally. We believed it was still the right thing to support him through this and to have him available when he’s ready. It’s not a football injury per se. It’s just something that he needs a procedure for, and he’ll be fine coming out the other side.”
Bloomfield also underlined the club’s belief in Odoffin and his long-term value to the squad.
“I highly rate him as a defender, as a leader, as a character, as a boy, as an individual,” he said, adding: “His desire to join us was really strong. Coming off the back of where we were the last two years, we felt that players with that huge desire to come and play for us was really crucial to blending the new group.
“Someone at the football club, as a recruitment department, had kept a really close eye on him before I was here. Someone who I know extremely well from playing against him. So all things aligned and we believe it’s still the right decision.”
The former Millers man told lutontown.co.uk: “I’m thankful to the club who got me in front of leading specialists straight away.
“Unfortunately, it does require surgery to correct the issue and ensure I can return to playing safely. I’ll be sidelined for a little while, but I’m fully focused on my recovery and will be working hard to get back to training with the lads as soon as possible.”
