“Would seem to make sense” – Luton Town confirm signing of Nottingham Forest man: The verdict | OneFootball

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Football League World

·3 July 2022

“Would seem to make sense” – Luton Town confirm signing of Nottingham Forest man: The verdict

Article image:“Would seem to make sense” – Luton Town confirm signing of Nottingham Forest man: The verdict

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Luton Town completed the loan signing of Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Ethan Horvath yesterday morning, with the 27-year-old arriving as Nathan Jones’ fifth signing of the summer.


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With the Reds heading into the Premier League, and with the World Cup just around the corner, the chance for more regular game time has aided Luton to secure a deal for the USA international.

Appearing 11 times for the Reds last season, playing in a deputy role to Brice Samba for the most part of the campaign, Horvath kept three clean sheets in six Championship appearances.

With James Shea out for a significant amount of time after suffering a knee injury late last season, Horvath arrives as Luton’s second goalkeeper signing of the window, with the Hatters adding Matt Macey to the squad too.

There of our writers here at FLW have shared their thoughts on Horvath’s move to Kenilworth Road and answer whether they can see him emerging as a starter…

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Billy Mulley

Nathan Jones often reminds the footballing world that he is not a lover of bringing in players on loan, however, this is a different situation to most.

With Shea tied down to a long-term contract, and when considering the goalkeeping injuries they suffered last season, ensuring that there was depth in the goalkeeping department topped the priority list.

There also remains a possibility that Horvath could join on a permanent deal should he succeed with the Hatters and Forest remain in the Premier League.

On paper, Horvath should emerge as the Hatters’ number one, although there is now some excellent immediate competition for a starting place.

Both Macey and the American international will be pushing hard for regular inclusion, but when adding Horvath’s desire to feature in the World Cup later this year, that might act as that extra bit of motivation.

Adam Jones

Ethan Horvath may have waited patiently for his opportunity at the City Ground – but he will want to be a regular starter this season with the World Cup coming up later this year.

Although he made a serious error against Middlesbrough early on in the 2021/22 campaign, he looked assured under Steve Cooper and was certainly unlucky to lose his starting spot to Brice Samba.

He may have James Shea and Matt Macey for company – but it would be difficult to see him not starting regularly considering his pedigree and how much he impressed during his first campaign in England.

The American will need to maximise his performance levels if he’s to retain his place – but he should be viewed as a starter and could potentially be valuable to the cause in Bedfordshire with his promotion-winning experience.

Toby Wilding

It would feel like something of a surprise if Horvath was to be a regular starter at Luton next season.

The Hatters have already invested in the signing of a permanent goalkeeper this summer, bringing Matt Macey back to Kenilworth Road.

You would therefore expect them to want to focus on getting a return on that investment, by starting him regularly in Nathan Jones’ side, which would leave Horvath in a back-up role, much like the one he held at Forest last season.

That would seem to make sense, given the cover they need for James Shea’s injury, and it could be argued Horvath is holding that role until Shea is fit again, meaning unless something goes wrong for Macey, it could be argued that Horvath will be playing a second choice between the posts for the Hatters.

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