Norwich City’s William Hondermarck almost joined Nottingham Forest.
Norwich City youth player William Hondermarck says he almost joined Nottingham Forest in 2017 but opted to remain at school and later join the Canaries academy in January this year, Eastern Daily Press report.
“I was too young. I thought I was ready for a big move like that, but I was nowhere near mature enough,” Hondermarck said of nearly joining Forest after being there on trial.
“It’s better off that it didn’t work out. Going over at this age is much better for me. Some people are ready at that age, but I don’t think I would have been. I’ve really enjoyed the time I’ve spent over at Norwich so far. I’ve already learned a lot.”
It is mentioned in the report by the EDP how Hondermarck almost joined Forest at 16 years of age, but the French-born youngster who now features for Norwich’s U23 side remains keen on his studies.
The 18-year-old moved to the Republic of Ireland as a youngster and ended up making 14 appearances for Drogheda in the Irish second division, alerting Championship clubs.
A report in the Sun claims Brentford were also keen on signing him last January, yet it was Norwich who won the race for his signature with the Canaries offering him a contract until 2021.
Norwich have given plenty of opportunities to their younger players over the past 18 months. The likes of Max Aarons, Jamal Lewis, Ben Godfrey and Todd Cantwell have broken through with great success.
Hondermarck will be hopeful he can follow in their footsteps, while Forest could end up regretting what could have been.
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