Stoke City signed Tom Ince for a reported £10 million fee.
According to a report in the Daily Mail, Premier League side Watford are interested in signing Nottingham Forest’s Joe Lolley in January with the Championship club set to demand at least £5 million.
A similar report in the Mirror (Nov 29: live blog at 16:42) claimed Newcastle United and Fulham were also keen on the player, and for the reported fee he would represent a potential bargain for the top-flight trio.
Championship playmakers don’t generally come cheap in today’s market. Stoke City, recently relegated from the Premier League, parted with £10 million (BBC) to sign Tom Ince from Huddersfield Town in the summer.
Ince’s record at Championship level is decent, scoring 26 goals over two seasons at Derby County, but his record so far at Stoke isn’t great with only four goals and one assist with the Potters struggling to get going.
If the 26-year-old represents a £10m playmaker in the second tier, then promotion challengers Forest must hold out for a similar fee for Lolley considering Ince’s former teammate at Huddersfield is performing so much better.
Lolley has been in terrific form for the Reds, scoring six league goals and also providing a further six assists in 15 league starts, with four of those assists coming in the latest barnstorming 5-5 draw at Aston Villa.
The 26-year-old is in the form of his life, and Forest’s chances of promotion this season will depend on whether firstly they can fend off interest in him in January and secondly keeping the player fit.
No player has provided more Championship assists than Lolley this season, while only West Bromwich Albion’s Harvey Barnes and Leeds United’s Pablo Hernandez have scored more from an attacking midfield position.
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