Derby are linked with Henri Lansbury at the same time speculation linking Hughes to Everton is intensifying – coincidence?
Even the most optimistic Derby County fan surely would not have expected to see Will Hughes still wearing the famous white 169 games into his professional club career.
Yet, four years after exploding onto the scene, his rapid dribbling and adhesive-covered control earning inevitable comparisons to a certain Rosario-born, Barcelona-based attacker, one of the most exciting talents in English football is still in the second tier.
Though, according to The Sun, Everton are hoping a £15 million bid is enough to tempt the 21-year-old to make the long-awaited step up. After a number of short-term injuries, and one season-ruining cruciate ligament tear, Hughes’ enigmatic qualities are a staple of Derby’s midfield again though for how much longer is anyone’s guess.
Coincidence or not, speculation that the Premier League beckons for Derby’s peroxide playmaker has emerged at precisely the same time as reports in The Sun claiming that The Rams are ready to make the most audacious of swoops for Nottingham Forest captain Henri Lansbury plan.
Like Hughes, the former Arsenal youngster is a forward thinking midfielder, capable of scoring and creating, and would be expected to slot immediately into the attacking midfield role vacated by their prized asset’s potential departure.
Lansbury has scored six times in the Championship this season and, while he is a less subtle craftsman than Hughes, his attacking output could convince The Rams chiefs to drive a dagger through the hearts of their East Midlands rivals.
Especially after the England under-21 international rejected the offer of a new deal recently, per The Sun, and, despite Steve McClaren’s sage warnings, it feels that the time is right for him to take that leap of faith.
“There is a lot more to come. He has to do a lot more, and he has got the potential. He is capable of doing that,” McClaren, who introduced Hughes to the senior squad during his first spell in charge at the iPro, told the Derby Telegraph.
“Will has the potential to go all the way but he is at a very good place at the present moment to learn the ropes, shall we say.
“He has a bright future and he knows he has to perform on the field, and that is all he focuses on.”
That future, however, appears unlikely to come to fruition at the iPro.
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