Liam Walsh has praised the Luton Town medical staff for helping him have the most productive season of his career.
The midfielder made 40 appearances in all competitions, 35 of them starts, during 2025/26. That is five more than his previous best campaign, when he played 35 times for Bristol City and Coventry in 2019/20.
Thirty of those starts came after Jack Wilshere had been appointed manager in mid-October, as the 28-year-old became the vital pivot at the base of our midfield.
After praising Wilshere’s impact, and how much he has learned from the former Arsenal and England midfielder, in an exclusive interview to announce his new contract, Walsh then moved on to the Town’s physios.
He told LTFC+: “I’ve got my set-up here now, and it goes back to the physios as well. They know the load that I need and the game time that I need, and I think our style of play suits me more than anything.
“It’s not just playing the long ball and sprinting up and down the pitch. With my style of play, it suits me well and I’ve got a really good base here.”
The ex-Everton and England youth international's form was crucial in the run of 12 matches unbeaten to the end of the season, with the Hatters missing out on the League One Play-off by a point.
“Coming towards the end of the season, we all knew what we wanted, which was to get in the play-off positions, but I was just taking it game by game, just enjoying my football again,” said the man who has played in the EFL for Yeovil, Birmingham, Bristol City, Coventry, Swansea and Hull before moving to Bedfordshire in 2024.
“There’s nothing worse as a player, constantly moving around every few years, so this is one that I really wanted to get done. I had it in my mind all through the season, so I was trying 110 per cent every game and doing as much as I could to perform for the club and earn myself a new deal, and I’m in a good position at the minute.”
Walsh scored the winner in the Vertu Trophy semi-final against Northampton, which was his first goal for the club and one which earned him both Sky Sports Player of the Match and the player of the round award.
He then starred in the 3-1 victory over Stockport County to lift the silverware at Wembley, which will, he says, always be a career highlight.
“I said in a few interviews before and after the game, it’s something that everyone wants to do,” said the midfielder. “I want to go to Wembley and coming away from there with a win as well, it’s just a bonus.
“We’ve got another crack at it again this season and it’s something we want to do again, and it’s something that I’ll remember right throughout my career, winning at Wembley with Luton.”
Finally, after taking part in an off-season training session at The Brache which all of the players have been part of at some stage this week, he was asked about his plans for the weeks leading up to the return to pre-season training on July 2nd.
“I’ll probably be going away again,” said the player who will follow up a relaxing holiday with a pre, pre-season camp in Portugal, training with his partner, the Aston Villa and England midfielder Missy Bo Kearns, who sent him a congratulatory video message on his contract.
“I’ve come in today and had a little session...and realised that I need to do a bit more because I couldn’t breathe!
“We’ve had a long season again, and it’s going away with your partner, or your mates, and refreshing your mindset and going and enjoying yourself in the summer, but also looking after yourself and making sure that we’re coming back sharp and getting ready to go again for next season.”
