Luton Town plot move for Barnsley FC ace ahead of 7pm deadline | OneFootball

Luca Connell has become the subject of late transfer interest from the Hatters

Luton Town are reportedly plotting a late move for Barnsley FC captain, Luca Connell, ahead of the transfer window's 7PM deadline on Monday night.

That is according to Mike McGrath of the Telegraph via X, with the Hatters looking to secure the services of one of their League One rivals' key performers.

It has been a disappointing first campaign back in the third tier for the Bedfordshire club, who are now hoping they will be able to narrow the gap between themselves and the play-off places in what remains of the campaign.

With there now just a matter of hours left until Jack Wilshere's first transfer window in charge at Kenilworth Road reaches its conclusion, the former Arsenal and England midfielder will be hoping to strike late deals on top of his first three acquisitions in charge of the club.

Wilshere had already secured the services of Kasey Palmer and Emilio Lawrence on loan from Hull City and Manchester City respectively, before fending off competition from a handful of League One rivals to sign the experienced Devante Cole from Port Vale, which also followed on from Jerry Yates' loan switch to the Championship's bottom club, Sheffield Wednesday.

Luton Town plot late transfer move for Barnsley FC captain Luca Connell

As per McGrath's fresh update in the early hours of Deadline Day, Town are now looking to swoop for the signature of Connell, who has established himself as one of League One's best-performing midfielders throughout his time with Barnsley, despite the fact the South Yorkshire side have regressed over time.

The journalist has revealed that the divisional rivals are currently in talks over a deal, with there now less than 12 hours until the aforementioned deadline.

Connell has plied his trade with the Tykes since the summer of 2022, initially penning a three-year contract at Oakwell following his release from Scottish Premiership giants, Celtic.

The 24-year-old has since gone on to make 152 appearances for the club, scoring seven times and providing a further 19 assists, with the bulk of those goal contributions coming in League One.

The former Bolton Wanderers academy graduate was initially named as Barnsley captain at the start of the 2024/25 season under Darrell Clarke, and has retained the armband under the management of Conor Hourihane.

Despite the Reds' mid-table position of 15th, just five points clear of the relegation zone, Connell has scored twice and posted three assists in 22 League One appearances so far this season.

At this stage of the window, Luton will hope that a deal can swiftly be finalised between themselves and the Tykes, although talks over a potential agreement will certainly worry those at Oakwell.

News of Connell's potential departure also comes after Football League World exclusively revealed that Wrexham have lodged a late-window bid for the services of star forward, Davis Keillor-Dunn.

However, the Tykes are pulling out all the stops to ensure Reyes Cleary remains in Yorkshire, with it being reported that the 21-year-old is now being valued at £8m amid previous links to Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield United.

Connell's potential switch to Kenilworth Road also comes after it was reported ahead of the weekend that Marvelous Nakamba could leave Town and potentially join Sheffield Wednesday as a free agent in the dying embers of the transfer window.