Luton told players they did not have to return to training if they felt unsafe due to Coronavirus, striker Danny Hylton has revealed.
Despite the directive, all of the Hatters squad reported back from training on May 26 after two months in lockdown due to the spread of the pandemic.
Football is set to return on Saturday June 20 when Town take on Preston North End at an empty Kenilworth Road, the first of nine Championship games in a month.
Luton are back in full contact training to prepare and though there have been positive tests at other clubs in the Championship, so far there has been a clean bill of health for the Hatters.
“The club has been fantastic,” said Hylton, whose contract expires at the end of the month.
“They’ve said, ‘anybody that doesn’t feel safe, you’re not going to be judged, there’s going to be nothing against you. If you don’t feel safe to come back and play, you stay at home and you do what you feel is right in these times.’
“This is bigger than football. It’s a deadly disease which is real and is killing people, so the boys have been fantastic. They’ve come back in.
“The longer training has gone on and the longer the days and weeks have gone on, you stick to the rules, we get tested every couple of days, so you know if you’ve got it and are at risk.
“We stick to social distancing. You’re not allowed in buildings. There’s a one-way system around the buildings and we wash our hands. We’re doing everything we can, so we don’t get this disease and we take it very seriously.”
Asked if he had any reservations about returning to the club’s Brache training headquarters, the 30-year-old said: “Early on you’re a bit sceptical and you’re reading and thinking, ‘I don’t want to do that, because football’s not important when it comes to a deadly disease.’
“I think, since we’ve come back, you realise that it can be done. I think it can be done quite safely, but the risk is still very real. It is still out there, and footballers aren’t immune to this disease.
“We just have to make sure we stick to the guidelines, be as safe as we can and try to stay free from this virus because it’s not just us at risk. We come home and can put our families at risk, and other people at risk. So, we’ll make sure we adhere to all the rules and, fingers crossed, everyone stays safe.”
Hylton is hoping the return of former manager Nathan Jones can help him feature more than the 22 minutes he’s played this season. He had been injured since March last year, but was available from around the turn of the year, though he admitted he was not in former boss Graeme Jones’ plans.
The forward said: “I’m back fully fit. Before the Coronavirus came about and we were on lockdown, I was in full training for about two or three months.
“I got to a good level and then, unfortunately, bigger things happened than football, we found ourselves stopping, but I’m back fully fit and raring to go, looking forward to it.”
On the resumption of training, after so long in isolation, Hylton said: “It’s good, to be fair we’re like little kids, we’ve been away from it for so long, you put us on a football pitch and everyone’s running around.
“They’re having to control us from doing too much, with GPS and what sport scientists are like now, with managing loads, but I think a few of the lads were a little bit higher (in distance covered) than what they would have liked.
“But I suppose it’s not like pre-season when you’ve got five or six weeks to get up to speed and then ahead of your first league game, we’ve only got two or three this time, the lads are running round, they look fresh and sharp and the lads are looking ready to go.”
