It seems like Henri Lansbury is on the shopping list of every club this winter. After Nottingham Forest rejected a £2.5m bid from rivals Derby County for the midfielder, and Burnley and Aston Villa also missing out, it is now Watford who are preparing a bid of their own, according to Sky sources.
Apparently, it is understood that the Arsenal youth product would actually prefer a move to the Premier League after spending some years in the Championship with Forest. And it could well be a club where he has spent a season on loan while he was at Arsenal.
The 26-year-old central midfielder will be without his current contract with Forest in six months and could be a free transfer next summer. However, Forest would definitely like to cash in on the talented midfield leader and Watford could definitely come in with a deal good enough to tempt them.
Although the Reds are amidst a takeover by an American consortium, while club officials have been trying to negotiate a new contract with Lansbury’s representatives, a move to the Premier League will be too hard to reject. If Lansbury doesn’t sign a new deal now, he is definitely moving in the summer and both Derby County and Watford are looking to take advantage of the situation.
He has scored 33 goals in 150 appearances since joining Forest from Arsenal for a fee of £1m in August 2012. His experience in the Premier League has also been pretty decent as he had to spend loan spells with numerous clubs while he was in Arsenal, which includes the likes of Watford, Scunthorpe, Norwich and West Ham.
Creating 29 chances so far, he has completed 519 passes with a pass accuracy of 75%, of which 87% were forward passes. In English football, Lansbury has 46 goals and 31 assists in 249 appearances, which includes his crucial contribution in helping West Ham United getting promotion into the league in 2011/12 season.
Lansbury is known for his composure in the midfield and he is pretty much an attack-minded midfielder capable of playing in the number 10 role, which Watford lack in the squad. After starting the season quite brilliantly, where they spent most of the first half of the season in the top half of the league table, Watford have lost ground and are now sitting 14th in the League with just 22 points from 20 games.
They would definitely have to get his signature if they are aiming a top half finish this season.
