Luton boss delivers verdict on Ross Barkley boos from Everton fans - 'he does love this club'

Luton Town boss Rob Edwards praised how Ross Barkley dealt with the Goodison Park jeers on his latest return to Everton.

Barkley grew up a boyhood Toffees fan and came through the academy ranks. He made 179 appearances for Everton, scoring 27 goals before leaving for Chelsea in 2018 in controversial circumstances.

Barkley had endured several difficult years at Stamford Bridge, while he had a disappointing loan spell at Aston Villa and spent last season at French club Nice. The midfielder returned to the Premier League last summer when joining newly-promoted Luton - and has been in inspired form this term.

Barkley was back at L4 to help the Hatters earn a 2-1 victory over Everton in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday. The 30-year-old was booed throughout the contest, but Edwards saluted how Barkley handled himself.

He said: "Ross dealt with it really well. It's football, we're in the entertainment business aren't we. Sometimes in football, there's a bit of a pantomime villain.

"This is Ross' club and he's from here, brought up here, played for this club and he does love this club. I'm not going to go into the past too much but I thought he dealt with it really well today."

For the second time this season, Luton earned a 2-1 win on Everton's own patch, having also proved victorious in the Premier League. Just like their triumph in September, both of the Hatters' goals came via corners. The visitors' winner arrived in the 96th minute when Cauley Woodrow pounced from close range and Edwards lauded his side's set-piece prowess.

“The two games we’ve won here we’ve shown the importance and value of set-pieces and that’s credit to the lads and the staff who put a lot of time and effort into them,” said Edwards.

“To be fair we also had some good chances from open play and should have taken one or two.”