Luton’s new star striker Elijah Adebayo has revealed he used to be a centre back, but has admitted he was never cut out to be a defender.
The 23-year-old has hit the ground scoring since his January transfer window switch from League Two Walsall, scoring in his first two consecutive starts and keeping top scorer James Collins on the bench.
The Londoner came through the Fulham academy and played for two years under former Hatters midfielder Mark Pembridge, though it was former Nottingham Forest and Portsmouth winger Steve Wigley and former Celtic midfielder Peter Grant that recognised his potential as a goalscorer.
“I loved scoring goals, I’ll be honest. Defending wasn’t really for me,” Adeabyo told the Luton Town Supporters’ Trust Podcast.
“In training, I’d just dribble, or just wander up there and end up scoring goals.
“I remember I was playing a game at centre back and they put me up front for the last ten minutes and I scored, so it was literally just me doing it unintentionally, but just going up the other end and trying to score as many goals as I could, rather than getting back and defending for the team.
“Then, when I went into the Under-23s team, they (Grant and Wigley) pulled me in before the season started and said, ‘listen, we’re going to change your position to striker’.
“That’s where I played from Under-9s to 13s. It was something I wanted to do and they knew I had the capabilities of doing it.
“Then, in my first season it was about getting used to get back into those positions as a striker and then in the second season I scored 14 goals before December.
“After that first year, I definitely found I was getting back to where I was. I’m still learning now, still picking up new things.
“Mick (Harford) is telling me about new positions I should pick up in and around the penalty box, so I’m still learning things to add to me game, but I would say it’s nice to be back.”
Adebayo was a forward until the age of 13, but by the time he was 14 he was playing two age groups higher in the Fulham Under-16s, with Pembridge as his coach.
The former Wales international began his career at Kenilworth Road back in the early ‘90s, during Town’s last spell in the top flight.
Adebayo said of his former youth coach: “He made me do the basics well and said, ‘you’ve got the physical size and strength, you’ve just go to be technically very good if you want to play at the highest level’.
“He was very frank with me and with other boys as well. He’d obviously played at a very high level, played for his country, so he knows what he was talking about.
“It was just about listening and taking onboard what he was saying. But I don’t think Pembs would’ve ever thought I’d turn into a striker.
“I used to train and stay up there, but I don’t think he would’ve thought I was destined to play centre back, to be honest.”
On the podcast, Adebayo also talks about the deadline day battle for his signature, with Huddersfield, settling in at the club and he looks ahead to Saturday’s Championship visit of Swansea City.
