Cardiff City head coach Erol Bulut has spoken out about his frustrations of not being able to complete any incoming transfers just yet in January – but he may not have long to wait for the first arrival into the Welsh capital.
Struck down by injuries this month, Cardiff had to name a handful of teenagers on the bench against Plymouth Argyle this past weekend, further showing the need for new signings.
Bulut has seen transfer targets fall by the wayside or move on to other clubs, such as Fenerbahçe striker Umut Nayir, but Cardiff’s Turkish boss is on the verge of landing a new goalkeeper.
Cardiff City set to land Horvath from Nottingham Forest
According to the Not The Top 20 podcast, the Bluebirds are set to sign Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Ethan Horvath on a permanent basis.
The 28-year-old, who has amassed nine caps for the United States national team, is well down the pecking order at the City Ground, and with just six months remaining on his contract at Forest, he is set to make the move to the Championship, where he spent the entirety of 2022-23 with Luton Town on loan.
Horvath moved to Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2021, making the switch from Club Brugge in Belgium on a free transfer after being their back-up option for two seasons, and he played just 11 times for the Reds in his debut season in England.
And following promotion to the Premier League for Steve Cooper’s side, 6 ft 4 in stopper Horvath was allowed to depart for the 2022-23 campaign, joining Luton Town, and he ended up being part of yet another play-off winning campaign with the Hatters.
Ethan Horvath’s Luton Town Championship Stats, 2022-23 Season
Appearances
44
Clean Sheets
19
Goals Conceded Per Game
0.8
Saves Per Game
2.1
Saves Made
91
Goals Prevented
-3.7
Touches Per Game
35.8
Pass Accuracy
49%
Clearances Per Game
0.8
Stats Correct As Per Sofascore
Featuring 47 times in the league, Horvath kept 19 clean sheets and conceded just 40 goals in that time to help the Bedfordshire side to an unthinkable promotion, but they opted not to sign him permanently after they reached the top flight, leaving the American stranded on the sidelines back at Forest.
Hull City linked with Horvath but set to miss out
Cardiff look set to fend off interest from a division rival as well, as Horvath was recently linked with a switch to Hull City, according to a report from the Daily Telegraph.
The Tigers have been looking at fresh competition for Ryan Allsop and Matt Ingram, who are both the wrong side of 30 and identified Horvath as a potential target with his promotion-winning credentials.
However, Hull were able to secure a work permit for their top target in the form of Fortuna Sittard’s Ivor Pandur, who completed his move to City over the weekend, and the Croatian’s arrival seemingly gave Cardiff a clear path to land Horvath.
Horvath arrival could see Cardiff cancel Arsenal deal
With Cardiff now on the verge of completing a deal for Horvath, it almost certainly means that Runar Alex Runarsson’s loan deal from Arsenal will be terminated.
The Iceland international joined in the summer to compete with Jak Alnwick in-between the sticks, but he made just one appearance in the Championship in his first three months with the Bluebirds.
