Jack Wilshere made it three successive wins as Luton Town’s new manager, but he had an almighty fright on Halloween from a familiar face.
Wilshere saw his League One side throw away a 3-0 lead against a team two divisions below them in the first round of the FA Cup before they sealed a 4-3 win in stoppage time.
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Two very familiar faces clashed in the FA Cup, and Savage nearly left Wilshere embarrassedCredit: Getty
The former Arsenal midfielder’s team were 2-0 up at half-time against Forest Green Rovers and then bagged another for a comfortable lead.
However, Rovers’ manager Robbie Savage worked his magic with three of his substitutes finding the back of the net for a remarkable second-half turnaround.
It looked like the National League side would at least earn extra time, if not a win in 90 minutes, as they had two huge chances after Aidan Dausch’s 79th-minute equaliser.
Yet it was Luton who found the winner through Gideon Kodua in the second minute of stoppage time.
Cameras instantly switched to Wilshere on the Kenilworth Road touchline, and the 33-year-old wasn’t celebrating; instead shaking his head at the collapse.
Perhaps when things cool down, he will realise how remarkable the goal was, given his history with Kodua.
Describing the moment, talkSPORT’s Ian Abrahams said: “Kodua won an FA Youth Cup as captain of West Ham against an Arsenal team coached by Wilshere two-and-a-half years ago.
“He’s just spared Wilshere’s blushes here with a fine finish in the penalty area.”
Wilshere had already reflected on his relationship with the forward, saying shortly after arriving at Luton: “I don’t want to talk about him!
“He was excellent in that game, and the first time I saw him, I said hello to him. He was all shy, and I said, ‘Don’t forget what you did to me.’
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Kodua was Wilshere’s hero, two years on from beating his Arsenal youth teamCredit: Getty
“He started laughing, but in that game, actually, last season as well, when someone breaks your heart like that, you follow their journey.
“I thought he had an interesting season last year, and it’s definitely a season for him to kick on.
“He has the ability to, we need to get him positions more where he can show his ability, but he’s very exciting.”
Kodua was quick to praise his new coach post-match, saying: “He’s brought out a lot.
“First session, I was asking a lot of questions and he told me ‘don’t worry, it’s a long season, you’ve got this, show what you’re capable of’.
“I think I’m showing it, and we’ve just got to keep going now.”
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West Ham-owned talent Kodua scored as the Hammers beat Wilshere’s Arsenal youth team 5-1 in the 2023 finalCredit: GettyWilshere: ‘It wasn’t done’
Speaking to talkSPORT post-match, Wilshere said it was an important lesson for his players that a game isn’t finished even at 3-0.
“The main thing is we won, we’re in the next round,” he said.
“We have to look at what happened, but as I said to the players three wins in a week is tough.
“This level is relentless and we have to have players that can go Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday so I’m happy with that.
“I’ve not ever had a moment as a coach where I’ve felt the game is done, I don’t think you can and I think it’s important the players realise that as well.
“It’s something you don’t want to go through but there’s always positives with games like this and I’m happy we’re through.”