Luton Town hit the jackpot with £100k midfielder - Norwich City handed Hatters major profit | OneFootball

David Bell had been playing for Rushden & Diamonds before a switch to the Hatters

When Luton Town completed the signing of David Bell from Rushden & Diamonds in 2006, few surely predicted what would follow.

Then-manager Mike Newell's decision to bring Bell to Kenilworth Road midway through Luton's first Championship campaign since 1996 probably didn't excite many fans.

The Republic of Ireland youth international had been a consistent performer for Rushden & Diamonds, appearing over 140 times and helping them secure the Division Three title in 2003.

How David Bell fared for Luton Town

Bell's early months at Luton following his £100k move suggested he might struggle to adapt to the higher level, and made just nine appearances in his first half-season as the Hatters finished 10th in the second-tier.

Despite the Bedfordshire club's relegation to League One the following season, finishing 23rd, Bell emerged as one of the few bright sparks.

At the end of the season, he claimed both the club's Player of the Season and Young Supporters' Player of the Season awards - making a total of 34 appearances.

Bell featured 40 times in the third-tier the following season, but found himself sent out on loan to Leicester City in March 2008, after the Hatters entered administration the previous November. That deal was supposed to be made permanent but didn't, due to the Foxes going down.

Luton Town made £650k profit on David Bell thanks to Norwich City

After seven weeks of negotiations, Norwich secured Bell's signature for a fee reported to be in the region of £750k in July 2008. This amount would have been a profit of around £650k.

The then-24-year-old certainly made then-Canaries boss Glenn Roeder excited, with the manager describing him as someone who "will add quality to our midfield from wide areas".

Upon arriving in Norfolk, Bell mentioned: "I am delighted to be here and looking forward to playing my part in what will be an exciting season, with Norwich City hopefully challenging for promotion to the Premier League."

Bell would only spend five months in Yellow and Green before signing a three-and-a-half-year deal at Coventry City in January 2009, even though he'd played 19 games in the second-tier by that point in the season.

Roeder had angrily accused Coventry of trying to "unsettle" the player before the move came about, but he wasn't in charge of the Canaries anymore when it did happen.

Media reports suggested Norwich had offered Bell as part of a swap deal for Elliott Ward, who was a Coventry defender.

Bryan Gunn told the club website: "He wanted to move back closer to home with his family. He has been very professional, we wish him well."

David Bell was "forced" to retire from football

After scoring six goals in 98 appearances for the Sky Blues, David Bell's contract was terminated in 2013.

Even though he later played for the likes of Notts County, Kings Lynn and Corby Town - Bell revealed he was forced to retire from the sport due to a hip injury he suffered whilst at Coventry.

"I sustained a hip injury from a tackle playing for Coventry City against Leicester City. To try and correct the problem, I had my fifth operation in four years but unfortunately it was not a complete success," Bell told Nebosh.

"I was forced to retire from the sport I loved."

Looking back on things, Luton definitely hit the jackpot with David Bell at Norwich's expense, despite the issues that surrounded the Hatters at that time. His move to Carrow Road landed a tidy profit, and he was on the move again in controversial circumstances before seeing his career end quite unfortunately.