Watford star edging closer to Vicarage Road exit | OneFootball

Watford midfielder Imran Louza is closing in on a Vicarage Road exit.

That is according to reports emerging from France on Friday afternoon.

According to L'Equipe journalist Loïc Tanzi, Louza is undergoing a medical with Ligue 1 side FC Lorient this afternoon after a 'total agreement' was reached between Watford and the French club this afternoon.

Louza is set to join the club on loan until the end of the season, although Lorient will have no option to buy, according to Tanzi.

Imran Louza set for Watford exit

Before a ball was kicked in August, it would have been unthinkable that Watford would allow Imran Louza to depart on loan.

Indeed, ahead of the Championship campaign, many would have argued that he was one of, if not the most talented player on the books at Vicarage Road. So, what has gone wrong?

Well, after some disappointing and inconsistent performances during the first half of the season, Louza lost his place in the starting XI, and, this just so happened to coincide with the Hornets putting together a good run.

As a result, the Moroccan international has found it difficult to force his way back into the team.

For example, so far this season, Louza has made 15 Championship appearances for the Hornets. However, only two of these have come since the beginning of November.

Indeed, in the Hornets' last 14 league matches, Louza has featured just three times, made the bench on seven further occasions, and has missed out on the matchday squad altogether four times.

As a result, after he was left out of the matchday squad for a clash last month, Watford head coach Valerien Ismael was quizzed on Louza's absence.

Ismael insisted that Louza had done nothing wrong, and urged the Moroccan to force his way back into his plans, saying he expected to see a reaction from players when dropped.

"It’s about performances and the merit of the players. Everyone has performed well and we have expectations for each player," Ismael explained to the Watford Observer last month.

“This is the way we deal with the squad this season. Jake Livermore was out of the squad at the beginning of the season, as was Edo Kayembe. That doesn’t mean you are totally out of things though.

“We expect a reaction. We expect that our players will always want to fight back and force me and my staff to take a decision.”

When asked at the same time whether or not Louza could potentially depart in January, Ismael also told the Watford Observer: “It’s too early to speak about that as we have important games coming up."

“It is always the same in every team. When players are not playing they are not happy and want a solution.

“But for now the focus is on us, the Championship and the games we will face.”

With no option to buy included in the deal, and a contract that runs at Vicarage Road until 2028, Louza will return to Watford in the summer following his loan spell.