Luton Town have signed Chiedozie Ogbene, with the Republic of Ireland forward becoming the club's first signing ahead of their debut Premier League season.
Ogbene will join Luton as a free agent on 1 July when his contract finishes with Rotherham United, who were relegated from the Championship last season.
He scored nine goals and added four assists in all competitions last season.
Welcome, @EdozieOgbene! 🇮🇪@premierleague | #COYH pic.twitter.com/KnOF4KEUKk
— Luton Town FC (@LutonTown) June 27, 2023
Born in Nigeria, Ogbene became the first African player to represent the Republic of Ireland. He has 15 international caps and has scored four goals.
Ogbene told the club's official website: “I’m delighted to be here as a Premier League player, because of my journey and where I’ve been in the last five-and-a-half years, from Limerick FC and the League of Ireland to Luton Town FC in the Premier League. My former coach said it would be one in 200,000 – I guess I’m that one!
“I’m just excited to be here. To feature in the Premier League is everyone’s dream and I’m really happy for the opportunity.”
High praise
Luton manager Rob Edwards added: “We got to look at him a lot last season in preparing to play against him and his Rotherham team, and in my opinion he was their best and most threatening player.
“We actually did a reasonable amount of work on stopping him as well as part of our game planning, so you know when you are doing that he should be on a list for possible recruitment.
“We know we are going to need some real athleticism in the Premier League, and he knows how to use it. He’s flexible, and he’s going to be able to play through the middle as a forward, but also as a wide one, if we wanted to play with wide forwards.
“He’s humble, he comes from a great family background and he’s had to work extremely hard to get where he is now, to get a crack in the Premier League. He should be really proud of himself and we’re delighted to be able to give him that chance.”
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Ogbene will hope to make his Premier League debut when Luton visit Brighton & Hove Albion on the opening weekend of the season, on Saturday 12 August.
