Luton Town are closing in on a deal to sign Carlton Morris from Barnsley for around £2 million, according to the Daily Telegraph's Mike McGrath.

The 26-year-old, who endured eight loan spells away from Norwich City before signing for the Tykes in January 2021, was a standout player for Barnsley as they were relegated from the Championship last season.

Morris chipped in with 12 goal contributions in all competitions as the toothless Tykes were condemned to relegation, despite missing a large portion of the first half of the campaign due to injury.

Harry Cornick and Elijah Adebayo are two of the first names on the team sheet under Nathan Jones heading into the 2022/23 season, with the dynamic duo complimenting each other extremely well as the Hatters finished sixth in the second tier last term.

But, beneath them on the depth chart at Kenilworth Road, there is not an array of attacking depth, and Morris would back his own ability to nail down a starting berth pretty quickly next season.

Morris gave Barnsley supporters hope in patches last season that survival was possible, but the 26-year-old offers a lot more than just goalscoring.

Aerially and physically he holds his own and can almost bully defenders at times, and he would be very well-suited to the direct high pressing football that Jones has implemented at Luton, particularly when playing at Kenilworth Road.

Morris played a crucial role for the Tykes as they stormed their way to a fifth placed finish under Valerien Ismael in 2020/21, and though Daryl Dike took a lot of the plaudits, Morris' contribution of seven goals, after arriving in January, and occupying defenders cannot be underestimated.

The Hatters' squad stood out towards the top end of the division last term, as one where the team was greater than the sum of its parts, without many individuals that claim to be of higher quality than the level, Morris could alter that a touch and he is improving rapidly at the age of 26.

 

 

To secure Morris for the peak years of his career, £2 million represents value in the market and the Hatters are in an excellent position to kick on and be just as hard to play against in 2022/23, should they sign him.

With the newly promoted sides not expected to be as strong in the second tier this time around, Luton may also have a sniff of the top two places in the opening months of the campaign.