William Troost-Ekong will remain at Watford until at least January having turned down the opportunity to move to Turkey, The Athletic understands. The Nigeria captain is understood to be determined to fight for his place at Vicarage Road, Abbeylivenetwork.com gathered.
According to The Athletic, Watford had rejected a proposal from Trabzonspor for the 29-year-old, which was a loan offer with an option to buy. Subsequently other Turkish clubs including Fenerbahce, Ankaragucu and Kasimpasa have presented loan opportunities for Troost-Ekong, however none have met the satisfaction of the club or player who will now remain in head coach Rob Edwards’ squad.
It’s understood that discussions have taken place between representatives of the player – who is contracted until 2025 – and club officials and sources close to the situation have confirmed that the central defender is fully committed to the club and wants to work hard to get a chance. So far this season he has only featured for 8 minutes in the Championship as a substitute in the 1-1 draw at West Brom, but did play 90 minutes in the 2-0 Carabao Cup defeat to MK Dons.
Troost-Ekong, who also had a spell at Turkish side Bursaspor in 2017-18, last started a league game for Watford on January 1 against Tottenham (0-1) in the Premier League under Claudio Ranieri before heading to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). When he returned from the tournament he then only featured as a 13 minute substitute in the 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace on the day relegation was rubber stamped at Selhurst Park.
Howvever, it would be recalled that Turkish champions Trabzonspor and Fenerbahce had emerged as leading candidates for the signature of William Troost-Ekong.
The 27-year-old centre-back made 32 league appearances to help Watford to secure promotion to the Premier League during the 2020-21 campaign.
