logo
Luton re-sign Naismith on loan from Bristol City

Luton re-sign Naismith on loan from Bristol City

BBC News28-01-2025
Luton Town have re-signed defender Kal Naismith on loan from Bristol City for the rest of the season.The 32-year-old made 68 appearances for the Hatters before leaving at the end of the 2021-22 season.His final games were the two legs of the Championship play-off semi-final against Huddersfield Town, which Luton lost 2-1 on aggregate."I'm delighted and excited to be back and grateful to get this opportunity. It's not often people get second chances, but I'm back to try and have a positive impact on the team between now and the end of the season," Naismith said.Luton are 23rd in the Championship, having won only seven of their 29 league games - and have lost the past 11 away from home.Naismith has made seven appearances for Bristol City this season, but none since a 2-1 home defeat by Sheffield United on 5 November."Kal is looking for regular minutes and this move will allow him to do that," said Robins technical director Brian Tinnion."He has been an excellent professional since joining the club and heads out on loan with our best wishes."Luton are back in action on Saturday when they take on Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough - with new manager Matt Bloomfield looking for his first victory in his fourth game since arriving from Wycombe."He's a player I've admired from afar for a number of years. I played against him when he was a wide player, then he went to centre-back and did so well here in his first spell," Bloomfield said of Naismith."He's a dominant defender, a leader and a character, but he can also play with the ball and gives us good balance with his left foot."
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'First wish': Sidelined Scotland stars come back on radar with stoppage-time winners
'First wish': Sidelined Scotland stars come back on radar with stoppage-time winners

Scotsman

time5 hours ago

  • Scotsman

'First wish': Sidelined Scotland stars come back on radar with stoppage-time winners

Striker bags key strike for Hull to continue strong start to season Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Forgotten Scotland striker Oli McBurnie capped off an excellent week with his new club Hull City by providing two assists and netting a stoppage-time winner in the Tigers' 3-2 Championship win over Oxford United. McBurnie signed for Hull City on a free transfer on August 6 after spending a year in Spain with Las Palmas, who were relegated from La Liga at the end of last season. He scored in the midweek EFL Cup defeat by Wrexham in his first start for the Humberside club and then dazzled in front of his new supporters at the MKM Stadium. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The 29-year-old set up Joe Gelhardt for a second-minute opener and then provided the assist for Matt Crooks' strike on 20 minutes. He then put the gloss on a fine individual performance when he calmly found the bottom-left corner in second-half stoppage time. Oli McBurnie celebrates his winning goal for Hull. | Getty Images McBurnie agreed a contract with Hull until the summer of 2028 and his manager Sergej Jakirovic highlighted Oli McBurnie's 'experience and quality' after the Tigers built upon their opening-day 0-0 draw at Coventry City. 'That was his second goal in his second game and two assists, I think,' said Jakirovic. 'He was from the beginning our first wish (in the transfer window). He was not with us at the first weeks this summer, but he can run and knows the very league very well. 'He is massive for us. He has experience and quality and it's very promising for us.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hull are still awaiting news from an appeal against a transfer embargo, which means they are unable to pay a fee for a player until January 2027. Fellow Scot Kyle Joseph came on as a second-half substitute, while former Rangers man John Lundstram started. Capped 16 times by Scotland, McBurnie has not featured for the national team since he scored a penalty in the Euro 2020 play-off shoot-out triumph over Serbia four years ago. He missed out on the squad for the tournament and has been exiled ever since. McBurnie spoke last season of his desire to get back into the Scotland set-up and will hope that his form has caught the eye of national team head coach Steve Clarke, who is expected to name his squad for the September World Cup qualifiers against Denmark and Belarus after next weekend's fixtures. Dykes on target late for Birmingham One striker who also staked his claim for a place in the Scotland squad is Lyndon Dykes, who netted eight minutes into stoppage time for Birmingham City as they came back from a goal down to defeat Blackburn Rovers 2-1 at Ewood Park.

Viktor Gyokeres given Premier League reality check on Arsenal debut as new £63.5million star fails to even have a shot
Viktor Gyokeres given Premier League reality check on Arsenal debut as new £63.5million star fails to even have a shot

Scottish Sun

time5 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Viktor Gyokeres given Premier League reality check on Arsenal debut as new £63.5million star fails to even have a shot

Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) VIKTOR GYOKERES was given a reality check on his Arsenal debut as the £63.5million striker failed to have a shot against Manchester United. Gyokeres was woeful in Sunday's 1-0 win at Old Trafford. 8 Viktor Gyokeres only had ONE shot on target against Man United Credit: Reuters 8 The striker struggled on his Arsenal debut despite the Gunners winning 1-0 Credit: Reuters But how did Arsenal fare in general in their opening game of the season? SunSport's Charlie Wyett assesses the situation… NEW SIGNINGS Gyokeres has room for improvement, putting it mildly. His last competitive game in this country was the 2023 Championship play-off final between Coventry and Derby and his Premier League debut will also be a day he will be keen to forget. READ MORE IN FOOTBALL COR-NER BLIMEY Fans spot Arsenal's sneaky new tactic to manipulate new Premier League rule He worked hard enough and did try and get in behind the United defence but the Swede was given little service in what was a poor performance from the title hopefuls. Gyokeres was decent in the Emirates Cup win over Athletic Bilbao which shows you exactly why we should never take too much from pre-season. Against Manchester United, the striker who is supposed to turn Arsenal into title winners, while admittedly getting very little service, failed to even have a shot. The £63.5million signing didn't contribute much to make up for his lack of threat up top either. BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS For all he ran and tried to assert himself, Gyokores only managed to complete four passes to his new team-mates, while giving the ball away five times. Mikel Arteta is hoping the former Sporting Lisbon man can be the dominant presence that Arsenal have been missing up front. Roy Keane clashes with Micah Richards on Sky Sports but fans distracted by Daniel Sturridge 8 8 8 8 But here the 27-year-old won just three duels against United's unheralded defence, losing ten. Martin Zubimendi also starred in that final game of pre-season but he really struggled here and failed to protect his defence. The arrival from Real Sociedad was given an instant introduction into the speed and physicality of the Premier League when he was caught in the face by Bryan Mbuemo in the opening 30 seconds. The Spaniard threw himself to the ground and tried to win a free-kick, referee Simon Hooper was having none of it Another new arrival, Noni Madueke, failed to make an impact when arriving as a sub but it would not be a surprise if we see him starting games quite soon. 8 Riccardo Calafiori took advantage to score from Arsenal's latest set-piece play Credit: Getty SET-PIECES New season, new set-piece routine. Since the start of 2023-24, Arsenal have scored 31 Premier League goals from corners - at least 11 more than any other side. Although Arsenal's first goal of the season was thanks to Altay Bayindir's clanger, Arteta used a different type of routine. We had seen this a few times in pre-season with five players lining up on the edge of the penalty although the goal came from Riccardo Calafiori who was already lurking near the back post and was able to get the final touch. The one thing that might really hurt Arsenal offensively this season is the new clampdown on pushing and shoving in the penalty area, something they do a lot. Although both teams were guilty of grappling with opposing players, Simon Hooper let a few things go - but not all officials will be the same. 8 Mikel Arteta could shake things up in the next game against Leeds Credit: Reuters NEXT UP - LEEDS Arteta will have plenty to ponder before sending his team out to face newly-promoted Leeds at the Emirates on Saturday evening. Although battles against Liverpool, Manchester City and Newcastle are on the horizon in a nasty opening sequence of fixtures, Arsenal will be expected to deliver a much better performance than what we saw at Old Trafford, where they were incredibly lucky to win. This game will give Gyokeres a terrific chance to score his first goal in the Premier League. Equally, Zubimendi should keep his place although already, Gabriel Martinelli surely knows his place is under threat with Madueke itching to make an impression. Although he scored the winner, Calafiori kept going walkabout at left back leaving Gabriel Magalhaes exposed on the left of central defence. This is why Myles Lewis-Skelly, who will probably have been peed off in not starting this game, might be given a run-out against Daniel Farkes' team.

Oli McBurnie scores added-time winner as Hull beat Oxford in five-goal thriller
Oli McBurnie scores added-time winner as Hull beat Oxford in five-goal thriller

Glasgow Times

time6 hours ago

  • Glasgow Times

Oli McBurnie scores added-time winner as Hull beat Oxford in five-goal thriller

McBurnie, who joined the Tigers as a free agent two weeks ago, stabbed home Ryan Giles' cross three minutes into added time to put the seal on what was a chaotic Championship game. Bosnian Jakirovic, who replaced Ruben Selles in the summer, might have been forgiven for thinking this league was a cakewalk as Joe Gelhardt opened the scoring after two minutes. But Oxford, as has become standard under Gary Rowett, rarely buckle under pressure and equalised seven minutes later through Spurs loan signing Will Lankshear. Matt Crooks restored Hull's advantage after 20 minutes before Cameron Brannagan equalised six minutes later during a relentless contest that was eclipsed by McBurnie's late intervention. Gelhardt's early strike set the tone for an opening period in which defensive principles went out the window in favour of attacking verve. The Leeds loan signing hared down the right wing before charging into the penalty box, from where three Oxford players gave him far too much space to whip the football into the bottom right corner. Jamie Cumming was beaten at his near post, but Gelhardt had feigned to cross and hit the ball with such power and accuracy that it was difficult to blame Oxford's goalkeeper. Vibrant Hull would have doubled their advantage three minutes later had it not been for Greg Leigh, who brilliantly blocked Crooks' goalbound effort from close range off John Lundstram's defence-splitting pass. With the hosts threatening to cut loose, Oxford unexpectedly drew level when Tyler Goodrham worked minor miracles to keep the ball in play at Hull's far post. Goodrham somehow stabbed the ball towards the centrally positioned Lankshear, who volleyed into the net past an unsighted Ivor Pandur. Unfazed by that setback, Hull regained the initiative when Gelhardt, again unopposed, found McBurnie in a dangerous position inside the penalty area. McBurnie passed first time to Crooks, whose late run into the six-yard box was matched only by his composed, low finish. But Oxford remained a threat on the counterattack and equalised soon afterwards after through Brannagan, who seized upon defensive uncertainty from Will Vaulks' long throw-in towards the back post. Brannagan's half-volley from the edge of the penalty area was well executed, but Pandur got two hands to the ball and should have done much better. Pandur gained a degree of redemption after 61 minutes when he showed laudable dexterity to prevent Matt Phillips from making an immediate impact from the substitutes' bench. Gelhardt later tried his luck from a similar angle to which he opened the scoring, but Cumming was this time up the challenge. The game rather tailed off inside the final half-hour as Oxford went deeper and Hull seemingly ran out of ideas. That was until McBurnie dragged his side over the line with a cute finish into the bottom-left corner.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store