This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk‘ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Luton Town were one of the busier clubs in the summer, opting to do the majority of their business very early.
The Hatters welcomed the likes of Reece Burke, Fred Onyedinma, Henri Lansbury, Allan Campbell, Carlos Mendes Gomes, amongst a few more names to Kenilworth Road ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.
The Hatters' strong recruitment drive in the summer meant that their January was extremely quiet, with Jed Steer being the sole addition.
In a window where the word "athletic' was consistently used by Nathan Jones in regard to a specific type of player he was looking to add, someone who did not necessarily fit the bill, but certainly arrived with a level of expectation was Lansbury.
Speaking about the midfielder's season thus far, FLW's Luton Town fan pundit Dylan Bhundia said: "Lansbury's been excellent. He brings that aggression, that bite to the midfield, and I think in the summer it was really important that we replaced the hole left by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in terms of ball progression, quality in possession, ability to break lines from deep, play forward passes.
"Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall could do everything, he could defend, he could attack, he could do everything. Lansbury just brings us that quality in possession that we lost in the summer with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. It was really important that we replaced that.
"Lansbury doesn't necessarily fit the kind of athletic player that we always look for, your Allan Campbell, your Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, but what he brought was that ball progression that we missed.
"He's been excellent, I've been so impressed with him and a massive, massive signing for us."
The verdict
Lansbury has emerged as a really important part of Luton's midfield this season, possessing the ball-playing capabilities and technical prowess to help progress play, whilst his tenacious nature has also been an added bonus.
He has slotted in excellently in recent weeks next to Allan Campbell and Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, with Lansbury adding composure and is a reliable figure.
As much as Jones embarked on this drive to recruit athletes, he has managed to strike great balance in the addition of Lansbury, whilst Cameron Jerome can also be thrown into the same conversation.
The 31-year-old's experience and character have also been a big boost in and amongst a relatively young squad.