Luton Town's Ross Barkley expected to miss Wolverhampton Wanderers clash

Luton Town are expected to be without the services of midfielder Ross Barkley for their trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon due to a hamstring injury.

The 29-year-old joined the Hatters as a free agent after leaving Ligue 1 club Nice following a one-year spell in France, returning to England where he is well known for spells at Everton, Chelsea and Aston Villa.

Barkley has featured and started in two top-flight matches for Luton since signing for the Kenilworth Road club, with both clashes against Chelsea and West Ham United respectively ending in defeat.

The former England international has appeared for the Hatters in a victory, however, with the Premier League club seeing off League Two outfit Gillingham 3-2 during the second round of the EFL Cup in August.

After playing 71 minutes in the loss to David Moyes's Hammers at Kenilworth Road on September 1, Barkley did not make the matchday squad for his side's trip to Fulham after the international break, and Luton boss Edwards is doubtful that the midfielder will be available this weekend.

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"Ross [Barkley] trained today. It will probably be a bit soon for tomorrow, we will build him up towards the Everton game, but he trained fully today which is good," Edwards told the media on Friday ahead of Saturday's trip to Molineux.

Barkley's absence at Craven Cottage last time out allowed new signing Albert Sambi Lokonga to slot alongside Marvelous Nakamba and Tahith Chong in the Luton engine room for the first time since sealing a season-long loan from Mikel Arteta's Arsenal.

A goal off the bench from Brazilian Carlos Vinicius was the pivotal moment of the contest in West London, extending the Hatters' losing run at the beginning of their first-ever Premier League campaign, with Edwards's side yet to collect a point.

Barkley provides a wealth of top-flight experience that is at a premium among the squad at Kenilworth Road, as the club opted to largely recruit players who have impressed in the lower divisions of England in recent times.

He could potentially return against his former employers Everton next weekend, with the EFL Cup trip to Exeter City on Tuesday night a game that the midfielder is likely to sit out of as a precaution.

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The 33-time England international made his debut in senior football at Goodison Park in 2010 and went on to play over 170 games for the Merseysiders, before sealing a lucrative switch to Stamford Bridge for £15m in January 2018.

Apart from Barkley, there are no fresh injury concerns according to Hatters boss Edwards ahead of this weekend's fixture against Gary O'Neil's struggling Wolves side.

"Everyone else came through the week and got through the Fulham game. There is just a couple of the long term ones which we were aware of, so it is how we were really," added Edwards when asked about further injury worries.

Long-term absentees for Luton include Gabriel Osho, Daniel Potts and Jordan Clark, with all three yet to feature since the club gained promotion from the Championship in May.