Baptiste arrived in West London after two years in Oxford’s first-team, where he had built a reputation as one of League One’s brightest young talents despite suffering multiple long-term injuries that restricted him to making just 26 league appearances for the U’s.

Thomas Frank described him as ‘great one-on-one…energetic, great on the ball and works very hard (at) pressing’ upon arrival, and he was mainly used off the bench in his debut season, appearing in 12 league games, but was not named in the squad as Frank’s side lost to Fulham in the Championship play-off final.

His injury woes unfortunately continued with the Bees, as he suffered a serious knee injury in September 2020 and was ruled out for the rest of the 2020/21 campaign after playing just four games, with Brentford winning promotion through the play-offs in his absence.

Baptiste made his top-flight bow in August 2021 against Aston Villa and netted his first goal for the club in a 2-2 draw away at Leeds in December – but started just nine Premier League games all season as Frank mainly used him as a rotational option in the midfield.

He was in and out of the team again in 2022/23, making 24 appearances and five starts in all competitions as the Bees consolidated their place in the Premier League.

This past season has seen his involvement in the squad lessen even further, as he made 12 appearances and played only 298 minutes in all competitions, leading the club to allow him to leave in search of regular first-team football upon the expiry of his contract this summer.

The Hatters have just been relegated back to the Championship, and face a big summer to keep hold of some of their key players that came so close to keeping them in the Premier League last season.

According to Football Insider, influential midfielder Ross Barkley has agreed a two-year contract with former club Aston Villa, with no transfer fee involved due to a clause allowing him to leave for free if Luton were relegated.

Holding midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga is also set to return to parent club Arsenal, despite impressing when fit for Luton, leaving Rob Edwards’ side with only Pelly Ruddock-Mpanzu, Marvelous Nakamba and Jordan Clark on-contract in the middle of the park ahead of next season.

If he can stay fit, Baptiste would be a shrewd addition to the Hatters midfield, with Edwards’ energetic, aggressive high-press tactics suiting his own playing style down to the ground.

He earned a reported £15,000-a-week at Brentford, according to Capology estimates, so it would also be a relatively cheap option on a free transfer, given what he could provide for their squad.

The 26-year-old could also stay in London, where he has likely settled since arriving at Brentford in 2020, but Luton would be set to face competition, according to TeamTalk, with news of Baptiste’s availability ‘sure to alert a number of clubs,’ after Brentford rejected multiple approaches for him in January.

Luton, though, feels a good fit in terms of location, the Hatters’ need for reinforcements and even Baptiste’s need to find a new home to get his career going again.