Sonny Bradley features: 3 August transfers Luton Town will want to emulate before Deadline Day | OneFootball

Luton Town will be looking to emulate these 3 players before the window slams shut

After Luton Town's disappointing start to the new season – a 4-1 drubbing to Burnley at Kenilworth Road – more recruitment needs to be done by the Hatters.

They have made only two new additions since returning to the Championship, with Reuell Walters and Shandon Baptiste coming in to bolster Rob Edwards' squad.

If Luton want to have a real say in the battle for promotion to the Premier League, you'd think they'll need to step up their recruitment over the next fortnight or so.

The club have already overachieved by their standards, but now the Hatters have got a taste for the Premier League, they'll want plenty more away days versus Liverpool and Manchester United.

Interest has been shown in the likes of Mark McGuiness from Cardiff City and they are looking into a potential loan deal for Brighton's Malick Yalcouye but Luton will want to get their signings - as they have in previous windows.

Here, we take a look at three players who the Hatters have signed in Augusts gone by that they'd love to repeat...

Sonny Bradley

Sonny Bradley spent five seasons with the Hatters and played his part in a title-winning campaign that saw their return to the Championship during his debut season in 2018/19 and then finished his Kenilworth Road tenure by helping the club win the play-offs to reach the Premier League.

Bradley was signed from Plymouth Argyle after impressing in League One with the Pilgrims and just missing out on the play-offs.

He was the perfect fit for Luton through his aggressive play style and aerial dominance. A prime Bradley is certainly someone Luton could do with at the moment – given what he would offer defensively and from a leadership perspective.

Edwards is a little short at the back at the start of the Championship campaign. Mads Andersen suffered a hamstring injury last October, which has kept the Danish centre-back out of action, and is still currently out with injury. Reece Burke is also out injured while Gabe Osho moved on in the summer and Tom Lockyer has only just returned to training, with his future involvements unclear, meaning 18-year-old Joseph Johnson started in the defeat to Burnley, making only his eighth start for the club.

Right now, you feel a defensive signing of Bradley's ilk would not go amiss.

Alfie Doughty

It couldn't be a Luton Town list without having this man. Alfie Doughty has been arguably one of Luton's most important player in the three seasons he's been there.

He was a key figure last season in the Premier League, scoring twice and getting eight assists.

Signing in the 2022 summer transfer window from Stoke City, the deal has proven a masterstroke for the player and club. He signed for an undisclosed fee and helped them in their promotion to the Premier League before proving one of their best performers in the top flight.

Reported interest from Premier League clubs earlier this summer shows that Doughty is clearly rated beyond Kenilworth Road as well.

Pinching a highly-rated rising star from an EFL rival, as they did with the former Stoke player, is just the sort of move that the Hatters should be looking to make this month.

James Collins

A striker who performed in every season at the club, James Collins was a brilliant signing for Luton Town.

Joining while they were still in League Two, Collins scored 72 goals and assisted 21 in the four seasons he was at the club, which is a big reason why Luton are where they are today.

His arrival from Crawley Town in 2017 would prove a pivotal moment in the rise of the Hatters, helping to propel them up the EFL.

He bagged a hat-trick on debut in an 8-2 victory over Yeovil Town, which is just the sort of instant impact that Edwards would no doubt love to see in a forward signing this month.

Although Luton have done well to retain great striking options in Carlton Morris and Elijah Adebayo, another goalscorer to help fire them back to the Premier League could be a smart addition.