Watford revelation emerges involving Dan Gosling

Dan Gosling was deemed surplus to requirements at Watford following Jake Livermore’s arrival at Vicarage Road, according to the Watford Observer.

It had previously been reported by the same outlet that the Hornets were in talks with the experienced midfielder regarding his future, with the player making a recovery from his severe Achilles injury.

Having picked up that injury against Bristol City in November, he was ruled out for the remainder of the season and there were even reports that his contract was going to be terminated.

That failed to materialise in the end, giving Gosling a lifeline in his likely quest to earn an extension in Hertfordshire.

Despite talks taking place, it didn’t seem as though there was much urgency to get a new deal over the line from the club’s side and it has since been confirmed that the player has left the club on the expiration of his contract.

Darren Witcoop previously reported that League One side Reading were interested in taking the 33-year-old to the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

He was linked with the Berkshire outfit at a time when they had no signings through the door and were in desperate need of additions in the middle of the park.

Lewis Wing and Charlie Savage have come through the door since then – but the Royals could still benefit from having more additions in midfield following Jeff Hendrick, Mamadou Loum, Tyrese Fornah and Cesare Casadei’s departures.

Gosling can also operate at right-back, although Andy Yiadom and Kelvin Abrefa can also play there and with that in mind, the 33-year-old would be most useful in central midfield.

However, the Royals’ current transfer embargo could prevent them from bringing many players in between now and the start of the season including Gosling, but that may depend on whether they can get their HMRC issue sorted.

Ruben Selles is in desperate need of additions and would surely welcome the experience that Gosling will bring – but it’s unclear whether the Royals are still pursuing him and whether he would be willing to drop down to the third tier if that’s the case.

Have Watford made the right decision to let Dan Gosling go?

Considering Livermore has come in and may be a better fit for Valerien Ismael’s system considering the former West Brom man has played under the Hornets’ boss before, the decision to let Gosling go is probably the right one.

There are no guarantees that he will be as good as he was before either, with the player suffering a severe, season-ending injury quite early on during the last campaign.

He may not have won a huge amount of game time next season either and with this in mind, both parties will probably benefit from his departure.

If Gosling does want to continue playing, a move to a club like Reading could be ideal, although the Berkshire outfit need to sort themselves out if they are to field a competitive team next season.

The fact he’s a free agent should make it easier for him to secure a move elsewhere.