Luton Town must do all they can to secure the signing of 26-year-old this summer: Opinion

Luton Town will be getting ready for their Wembley showdown with Coventry City.

The Hatters booked their spot in the Championship play-off final after they overturned a 2-1 deficit in the first leg to win 2-0 at Kenilworth Road against Sunderland.

Standing in the club’s way of an historic promotion to the Premier League is Coventry City, who got past Middlesbrough,

While all focus will be on that crucial game, and rightly so, the club have seemingly already looked at potential summer targets, with one emerging this week.

Luton Town are interested in signing Wes Harding

It emerged on Thursday that according to Football Insider, Luton are interested in signing defender Wes Harding this summer.

The 26-year-old is set to leave Championship side Rotherham United when his contract expires this summer, and the Hatters are said to be keen on him.

The report adds that Luton have been watching Harding throughout the campaign and are now preparing to submit a contract offer.

However, while preparing to face Coventry on the pitch, it seems Luton are facing a battle of their own as well, as the Sky Blues are also keen on signing the defender this summer.

Harding has been a regular performer for the Yorkshire side this summer, and the club are believed to have offered him fresh terms, but the 26-year-old rejected that and insisted he wanted a new challenge.

Why Luton Town should sign Wes Harding this summer

Luton are in a very tricky position at the moment, as the club are preparing for a huge play-off game, and one doesn’t want any distraction from that, so transfer plans could be put on hold, and two, the club doesn’t know what league they could be in next season.

These will be things Luton can live with, as they would have taken being in this position at the start of the season.

While Luton could potentially be a Premier League team next season, this is still a signing that the club should be looking to wrap up. The 26-year-old is a player who has racked up many appearances across the EFL in the last few seasons.

Since departing Birmingham City, Harding has gone on to be a regular starter for Rotherham, either in the Championship or League One. Yet while he may not be Premier League quality, he would still be a good addition to the Luton team this summer.

He is a defender that can play as a centre-back as well as a right-back, and at times has featured at left-back as well. So, Harding would bring some versatility to the Luton backline, and he could also be a decent option for the club should they not sign Cody Drameh on a permanent basis.

The defender is on loan from Leeds United, but while the club are prepared to sell him, it is not yet clear if he will return to Luton.

ven if Drameh or another player arrives at Luton, Harding could be a very useful option to have in the squad, as he is versatile, as mentioned, and is still reasonably young and coming into the prime years of his career.

The most noticeable reason why Luton should sign the 26-year-old this summer is because he is a free agent, and while the club are in the dilemma of not knowing whether they are going to be a Championship team or Premier League team next season, a pickup like this is very useful.

Luton are never going to be a side that has a tonne of money to spend on players, so they will need to continue what they have been doing so well at, which is picking up proven players on the cheap. So, Wes Harding could be another example of that this summer, and he surely should be pursued by the Hatters.