Luton Town’s option to turn Gideon Kodua’s loan move into a permanent deal is firmly on the table after the forward continued his rapid rise with another goal in a convincing 3-0 win over Leyton Orient last night.
The West Ham United loanee, who joined in the summer, has now scored three times in two games and has gone from impact substitute to automatic starter, a shift that underlines both his form and his growing importance to Jack Wilshere’s side.
Kodua’s festive goals mean he is now Town’s leading scorer this season, a remarkable turnaround for a young 21-year-old player still adapting to senior football.
Wilshere made it clear after the Orient victory that he is endorsing the option within the current loan deal to buy Kodua in the summer.
When asked if he wants to make the deal permanent, Wilshere said: “Yeah, for sure.
“What happened before, I can’t comment on, but that is, in my opinion, a really good signing with a really good option in it.
“He’s stepped up and that’s a bit of pressure as well for a young player to come, because, from the club’s point of view, it’s almost like a trial and he’s taken it, so I think, yeah, for sure.”
Beyond the goals, Wilshere was keen to highlight the mentality that has helped Kodua force his way into the team and stay there, even during spells when he found himself out of the starting XI.
“The commitment he has to his development. I think about after the Reading game, I was sat at the front of the bus and I had a tap on my shoulder and it’s Gideon.
“He says, ‘can I have a chat?’ And he wants to know what he can do to improve, what he can do to get better and he does that constantly, but I’m just thinking, like, that’s his mentality.
“And that’s just after a defeat and he comes to the front of the coach to ask the gaffer straight away, and that’s who he is.”
Wilshere added that Kodua’s personality has made him a popular figure inside the dressing room, as well as a player the coaching staff enjoy working with.
“He has a real warmth about him and energy and the lads feed off it. The players love him and the coaches love him,” the manager said.
“He’ll go to the coaches, he’ll go to Powelly [Chris Powell] and sit down with him and look at clips and talk about how he can improve and his commitment to his development is, in my opinion, why you see him improve.”
While Kodua’s progress has been rapid, Wilshere stressed that setbacks are part of the process, pointing to periods earlier in the season when the forward had to be patient.
“He’ll have some moments as well because development is not always always linear. There’s some tough moments in it and actually sometimes in them tough moments is where you actually develop even more.
“And, probably, he had a few of them where, when I first came he was in the team, then he wasn’t in the team, then started scoring, coming off the bench, and it’s a good story for the players.
“But the way to get back in the team is to do things right, it’s to train right, to have a good attitude, is to try and get better and he definitely does that.
“So I’m really happy with him.”
Wilshere also pointed to Kodua’s growing composure in front of goal, referencing his recent finishes and his willingness to keep backing himself even when things do not quite come off.
Discussing his strike against Orient, the Town boss said: “He took it early. He asks questions about that, about scoring and finishing and he practises finishing a lot different types of finishes.
“I think actually as well, which we’ll sit down and go through it with him, I thought at times he maybe overdid it, took too many touches and gave it away at times.
“But what I love about him is he’ll go and do it again and he’ll go and try it again and he loses the ball, he’ll try and get it back quickly and he never loses his spirit.
“And that’s important because, as a young player, you’re not always going to make the right decision, but he’s starting to more consistently and hopefully he can keep going that way.”
With goals, attitude and buy-in all aligning, it already feels less like a loan experiment and more like the early stages of a long-term Luton player finding his home.
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