Luton Town Football Club

Rob Edwards was appointed Luton Town manager on a minimum three-and-a-half year contract on 17th November 2022.

The 39-year-old, who started his managerial career with hometown club AFC Telford United, arrived at Kenilworth Road as one of the EFL’s most coveted young coaches after winning the Sky Bet League Two title with Forest Green Rovers in 2021-22.

Widely respected for developing young players as Under-18s and then 23s coach at Wolverhampton Wanderers - who he led to promotion to Premier League 2’s top-flight - Edwards had left his dual role as England U16 head coach and U20 assistant to join Rovers in June 2021.

He quickly earned a reputation for playing front-footed, pressing, aggressive football, with his side the second highest scorers in the division, best counter-attacking statistics, best expected goals data, as well as keeping 19 clean sheets while winning 24 of his 53 matches in charge.

That success earned the former Wales international the League Two Manager of the Year award, as well as a summer move to the Championship, where he had spent most of his playing career with the likes of Blackpool, Norwich City, Barnsley and Wolves after starting out in the Premier League with Aston Villa.

Edwards’ stay at Watford proved harshly short-lived, but with his team only a point outside the play-off positions after ten matches, his name remained as highly regarded as previously, and linked to other vacancies in the second tier.

Less than two months on, he returned to football management with the Hatters as successor to Nathan Jones, who had departed for Southampton a week earlier.