Too late: Portsmouth summer target and ex-Arsenal and Plymouth man up for grabs after cancelling Luton contract

The out-of-favour goalkeeper cancelled his Kenilworth Road contract by mutual consent on Saturday, rendering him a free agent.

As a consequence, he is now free to find a club outside the summer transfer window, which closed on Friday night.

Pompey had previously explored bringing Macey back to the south coast following an impressive loan stay in the second half of last season.

However, with the 28-year-old under contract at Luton and having received a substantial wage rise following their Premier League promotion, a potential move faltered.

Instead the Blues recruited Will Norris from Burnley on a free transfer to serve as their number one, with the keeper subsequently enjoying a fine start to life at Fratton Park.

For Macey, the hunt is now on for a new club after effectively being relegated to fourth choice with the Hatters following the summer signings of Thomas Kaminski and Tim Krul.

In addition, the long-serving James Shea is also considered ahead of the former Hibernian man, who was recruited by Nathan Jones in June 2022 for an undisclosed fee.

A statement on Luton’s website said: ‘Luton Town can confirm that we have reached an agreement with Matt Macey to be released from his contract by mutual consent.

‘The 28-year-old goalkeeper was signed by Nathan Jones from Hibernian last summer and only made one appearance before going on loan to Portsmouth in January.

‘Macey made 13 appearances for the Hatters when he was previously on loan at Kenilworth Road from Arsenal in the 2016/17 season.

‘We would like to wish Matt all the best for his future career.’

Macey arrived at Pompey in January in the aftermath of Josh Griffiths’ sudden recall by West Brom.

He went on to make 21 appearances, swiftly winning over the doubters with a string of excellent performances as the Blues climbed the table under John Mousinho.

Such was the quality of his displays, Pompey sought to bring him back permanently in the summer, yet a deal proved too difficult.

Despite having made just one appearance for the Hatters, Macey’s contract entitled him to a pay rise should promotion to the Premier League be accomplished.

As a result, his wage expectations became out of reach, while the former Arsenal keeper also had 12 months remaining on his two-year Kenilworth Road deal.

Instead Norris arrived in June following his Burnley release and has made six League One appearances to date, conceding just twice, during an encouraging start to life at Pompey.