AS Saint-Étienne are hoping for Watford to sign Pierre Ekwah permanently in the summer.
The Ligue 2 side allowed the midfielder to go out on loan to Watford in the winter market, after a nasty fallout.
In August 2024, he initially joined Saint-Étienne from Sunderland with an option to buy set at €7m. At that time, they were in the Ligue 1, and he featured regularly last season.
The French club dropped out of the top division but still went ahead and made his stay permanent by exercising the clause.
This clearly didn’t please the 24-year-old, who refused to train with Saint-Étienne. Last September, Sport Witness relayed news of him considering unilaterally terminating his contract.
However, he didn’t take this step, allowing his parent club to let him the Championship side on loan in February.
He waited for several weeks to make his debut for the Hornets.
Two months ago, Sport Witness covered claims from France it would take time for him to get minutes. Prior to his move to Vicarage Road, he last made a competitive appearance in May 2025.
Situation improving at Watford
Pierre Ekwah made his debut for the English club in their 2-0 league defeat to Ipswich Town in February. Since then, Edward Still has given him minutes and the player has been starting to gain prominence in recent weeks.
His Championship stats are as follows:
- Appearances: 7
- Starts: 3
- Total minutes: 280
- Minutes per game: 40
The player’s average minutes will improve as and when he continues to start more games until the end of the season.
Peuple Vert, a website dedicating their coverage to the French club, have a report on potential exits for the next window.
The former Sunderland man’s recent improvement at Watford pleases Saint-Étienne. They are hoping for Still’s side to make his stay permanent by exercising the €7m purchase clause.
If that were to happen, it’ll offer ‘significant financial gain’, which is what the French club are looking for.
Our take: Hornets could request transfer discount
As of now, it’s unclear whether Watford want to retain Pierre Ekwah and if they do, whether they want to pay €7m.
In the event the decision is made to retain the midfielder, the Hornets could certainly try to lower the price.
It’s known he has no future at Saint-Étienne, and the Championship club can take advantage of this to bring the final price down. This is only if Watford decide to buy him.
