Luton Town deal for Leeds United player had devastating conclusion | OneFootball

A leg break put paid to Eunan O'Kane's career resurgence just weeks after leaving Leeds United

Injuries are amongst the worst things in football, and for Eunan O'Kane, the leg break he suffered just weeks into his loan spell at Luton Town paid to a career resurgence.

The seven-capped Republic of Ireland international had made it to the Premier League with Bournemouth, being one of the star players in their 2013/14 promotion out of League One, and a key member of their squad in the subsequent two years in the Championship.

As the Cherries grew into life in the top flight, the squad outgrew O'Kane, who made just 16 appearances, despite being named in 32 league squads, during the 2015/16 campaign, and thus made a move back to the Championship with Leeds United.

After being in and around the side for a couple of years at Elland Road, his career in West Yorkshire was abruptly ended upon the arrival of Marcelo Bielsa — a decision that the midfielder said was "hugely frustrating".

O'Kane would search for first-team football and found it on loan with a Luton side who were on the rise. But unfortunately, he only played four times for the Hatters in the final spell of his career.

Eunan O'Kane's cruel end to his Luton Town loan spell

With no chance of first-team football at Elland Road, O'Kane made the move to Kenilworth Road to sign for a Luton side who had just finished runners-up in League Two the season before.

The Irish midfielder initially joined on a short-term deal until January 2019, but his time spent on the pitch at Kenilworth Road was even more short-lived than his loan spell indicated.

The then-28-year-old had come off the bench in the opening three League One games of his loan spell, but his third, a 1-0 win against Bristol Rovers, saw him come back off again 13 minutes later on a stretcher.

Luton would then confirm that O'Kane had fractured both his tibia and fibula, and would undergo surgery before returning to Leeds for treatment.

A double leg break that stopped the Irishman from really kicking on at Kenilworth Road, and despite the success that Luton had under Nathan Jones that year, perhaps their title-winning campaign would have been more convincing than the three-point barrier they had over second-placed Barnsley with the Leeds loanee in the side.

Eunan O'Kane never played again after the double-leg break at Luton Town, despite second loan

O'Kane's road to recovery was a truly difficult one. An injury that severe can be almost impossible to recover from, and as it turned out, the Irishman never could.

Marcelo Bielsa's stance on the midfielder hadn't changed from the one he had established when he came through the door, and especially now that he'd transformed the Whites from a mid-table Championship side to one which finished third in the 2018/19 campaign.

The next season saw Leeds once again battling atop the second tier, and even with O'Kane targeting a return in January 2020, there was next to no guarantee of minutes at Elland Road. Therefore, he found himself back at Luton, arriving on an 18-month loan spell until the end of the 2020/21 campaign.

This second loan move to Kenilworth Road provided a route back to playing once more, but further injury setbacks and fitness worries meant that he didn't play at all during that second spell.

He returned to Elland Road and was released from his contract at the end of Leeds' first season back in the Premier League in 2021, three years since he last played for the club.

That release proved to be the end of the Irishman's career, as he retired shortly after, aged only 30.

O'Kane's career was always haunted by little niggling issues, whether that be injuries or a lack of favour with certain managers. When afforded a run out in a team, he always proved his worth, whether that be in League Two with Torquay United or further up the pyramid with Bournemouth or Leeds.

The way his career ended will always be cruel, as is the case when injuries force a player to retire. But in O'Kane's case, being forced to play your last game at just 28, when players are set to hit their "prime" carries even more disappointment.