Emilio Lawrence (Man City / Luton)
I played a game with the Stacey West team when writing this, I asked them who they thought I’d picked. Chris said he had ‘considered’ Lawrence and thought ‘nah’ and I can see why. He wasn’t an immediate success, and it is Luton, a side that haven’t really screamed attacking brilliance. Still, I liked the look of him against us, and that was only his second Luton appearance.
Since then, he has really settled. In all competitions for the Hatters, he has two goals and six assists, and it is those assists I really like. This lad can play wide left and wide right, swapping at will, and he feels like Reeco Hackett in profile, but with the top-flight academy backing. He’s a Scotland Under 21 international, and if he carries on, he’ll be a Scotland international.
His stats look good, four crosses a game, just under three dribbles again, and good completion stats. He’s slick, full of ability and shows great technique, but (and here is a big reason for his pick) he has also played wing-back for the Hatters. That demonstrates good tracking back and, unlike Cozier-Duberry, he has defensive duels in every one of his Luton games, bar one. He averages 3.32, which is a figure Reeco usually hits (every so often, Reeco posts ten or so which lifts his average).
Lawrence is Championship-bound. Will it be with Luton? Not likely, and if it isn’t, we should be in the queue in my opinion.