Watford defender Wesley Hoedt is close to a move to Turkish Super Lig side Trabzonspor, according to Turkish publication Dirilis Postasi.
Personal terms had previously been agreed between player and club and it is now being reported that Watford have sanctioned a deal for the Dutchman to leave. Hoedt is set to fly to Turkey in the next few days ahead of a transfer being officially confirmed.
The move is set to see the Hornets pocket a fee in the region of £2.5 million with a three-year deal agreed, seeing the Hertfordshire side net a profit of around £500,000.
Hoedt is already vastly experienced on the continent, with a variety of European spells, as well as a period with Premier League side Southampton. The former Netherlands international came through at AZ Alkmaar before a spell at Lazio and had various loan stints during his time on the South Coast. After a time at Anderlecht, he made the move to Watford where he went on to make 63 appearances.
Hoedt wouldn’t be the first man to make the move from the Championship to the Turkish outfit this summer, with former Hull City midfielder Ozan Tufan having made the switch back to his homeland. A move would see Hoedt return to European competition, with Trabzonspor having qualified for the Europa League, having finished 3rd in the league.
The upcoming season is looking to be a difficult one for Watford, and it’s looking like they’ll have to do it without Hoedt. New manager Tom Cleverley is a relative unknown as he approaches his first permanent senior managerial role, and players such as Yaser Asprilla have also been linked with moves away from Vicarage Road. The Hornets head into the season off the back of a difficult 2023-24 campaign, and 2024-25 is looking to be fairly similar.
Writer’s View
This is disappointing for Watford as Hoedt is an experienced player who played well in his time at the club. That being said, they’re getting a good amount of profit for a 30-year-old, so they will be able to reinvest the money on more youthful acquisitions. The move may not be welcomed by new boss Tom Cleverley who would have appreciated Hoedt’s presence in his first managerial role, but it remains to be seen how th Hornet’s will do without him.
Rhys Evitts is a freelance journalist who graduated from the University of Lincoln with a degree in Journalism in 2024. Rhys has contributed to the Real EFL since finishing university in June 2024 and also hosts The Real EFL Podcast, and specialises in the Championship and League One.
