Man City star should be top of Luton Town's three-man transfer shortlist | OneFootball

Luton Town will likely be on the hunt for new faces in January to improve their league position

Luton Town’s return to the Championship has not gone as anyone at the club would have liked.

They find themselves languishing in midtable at the midpoint of the campaign, and will want to attempt a charge on the play-off places in the new year if possible.

To do so, they may look to enlist the help of some new faces in the January transfer window.

With that in mind, Football League World have established three names who should be at the top of Luton's transfer list…

3 Josh Wilson-Esbrand

Much of the Hatters’ success in the Premier League last season came down the left flank through Alfie Doughty but he’s not been fit enough for the squad since the beginning of November, leaving Luton relying on a 34-year-old Victor Moses playing on the opposite side to his usual berth.

It has exposed how light the club are in a position that is vital to the way manager Rob Edwards wants to play and an injection of youth here could be useful.

Josh Wilson-Esbrand of Manchester City has played all along the left flank so far in his career, from left-back to left-wing, so should be capable of dealing with the demands of Edwards’ wing-backs — his energy could add something defensively in terms of tracking back, but also add some weight going forward in possession.

2 Rob Holding

There’s no getting away from the fact that most of the Hatters’ issues are defensive — few teams have conceded more than them this term, which is disappointing given they were a Premier League club last term.

Bringing in some experience in the backline could help shore up their defence and one outside candidate for the gig may be Rob Holding.

The centre-back has been frozen out at Crystal Palace due to a falling out with boss Oliver Glasner and is currently training with the youth squad.

Now nearly halfway through the season, there appears to be no easy solution to the issue, and Holding has a contract at Selhurst Park until 2026.

A permanent deal may be a stretch, but there appears to be no natural Premier League placement for Holding. He will want to be back playing senior football and Palace will want him in the shop window if there’s no route back to Glasner’s side.

Therefore, there’s a world where a deal works for all parties for Holding to have a temporary spell at Kenilworth Road, getting his career back on track and providing a quick fix to the Hatters’ defensive issues.

1 Ali Al-Hamadi

Luton’s problems are primarily defensive but it never harms to add some extra firepower in January to provide some sterner competition for the likes of Carlton Morris.

Ipswich Town’s Ali Al-Hamadi has been a victim of the club’s rapid rise. Having been signed with the club in the Championship, he is now finding Premier League minutes hard to come by.

The 22-year-old could do with a few months away to get some more minutes under his belt and he’d had a much better chance of breaking into the side at Kenilworth Road.

Last season, he proved he can feed off scraps and make the most of any opportunity given, nabbing four goals and an assist in 14 appearances, with just one of those coming from the start.