Luton chief hints at option to sign Nottingham Forest loanee Horvath on a permanent basis

Hatters boss Nathan Jones has hinted there is an option in place to sign Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Ethan Horvath on a permanent basis at the end of his season-long loan spell at Kenilworth Road.

The 27-year old moved to Luton for the campaign from Premier League side in the summer after playing just 11 times in all competitions for the Reds during their promotion to the top flight last term.

Needing first team football to make sure of his place in the USA squad for World Cup Finals that start in Qatar next month, Horvath has had just that since arriving at Luton, starting all 13 Championship games to date, as he was selected to travel to Germany and Spain for America’s last two warm-up games ahead of the tournament recently.

The Colorado-born stopper is believed to have another year left on his deal at the City Ground, as when asked about his impact at Town so far, Jones said: “He’s settled very quickly.

“Goalkeepers they’ve got three, four or five best mates already as they go off in their little group, but Ethan has earned the respect of everybody because of the way that he is.

"A real good guy, real character, he’s really diligent, positive, a pleasure to be around and he’s just rubbed off on everyone really.

"We don’t take loans, but we felt that when there’s an opportunity to really improve, then we take that gamble and then we always try to get an option, so there’s things in place that if we would like to make it permanent then I’m sure we can.

"We haven’t taken many loads, we had (Kiernan) Dewsbury-Hall, who was a fasticai success, so when we do take them we really handpick them.

"We don’t take five or six and then there’s one ore two on the bench, one or two out of the squad, one or two playing, we take them because we feel they’re going to improve our 11.

“I think he has been a very good addition.

"He’s a real good goalkeeper, we knew that before we brought him, we waited, we could have signed goalkeepers a lot easier before we brought Ethan in, but we waited because we believed he was the right one.

"He has been excellent, very diligent in his work, a real safe pair of hands and he’s forming a real good bond with the defenders he is playing with, so we’re really happy with him.”

Horvath himself was clearly loving his time with Luton since arriving in July to battle with Matt Macey and Harry Isted for the number one jersey, as speaking recently about this time with the club so far, he said “I’ve enjoyed every single moment here.

"It’s a fantastic club, ever since day one I felt welcomed by everyone, from the kitchen staff, coaching staff, players, physios, everyone, the whole club.

"It’s a really, really nice club and so far I’ve enjoyed it.

“It’s nice when you come to a team, especially on loan, sometimes it doesn’t go so well, but you know I’m here, I’m all in for what the manager and what the club wants to do.

"What their goals are, what they want to succeed, I’m all in for it and I want the best for the club.

"I’m not here for myself, I’m here for the team and I’m here for the club.

"I want Luton to achieve their goals and their aspirations as well, if I’m a part of it, that’s just an extra bonus.”

Horvath has kept five clean sheets from his 13 outings since his move to Bedfordshire, the latest in a goalless draw at West Bromwich Albion at the weekend, which made it three shut-outs in four fixtures.

On the link that is now growing between the keeper and Town’s somewhat ever-changing back three, Jones added: “That comes with playing games and being consistent in terms of an understanding.

"The goalkeeping department is really good, we've had real competition where they are competing now, it's not just a comfort zone for anyone.

"There's three there that want to play, that believe they should be number one, and that only bodes well for the competition that we have.”