Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Ethan Horvath has been compared to former Premier League star Brad Friedel ahead of an expected recall to the starting XI.
The summer signing is set to replace Brice Samba at Preston North End this evening (Tuesday, 7.45pm kick-off) as Steve Cooper's number one begins a three-match suspension after seeing red last time out against Stoke City.
Horvath has made just three appearances this season for Forest since arriving on a free transfer from Club Brugge and has yet to feature competitively since Copper became head coach last autumn.
The 26-year-old's last outing came in Chris Hughton's final match in charge against Middlesbrough, a 2-0 defeat, having previously played in the opening two rounds of the Carabao Cup against Bradford City (a 2-1 win) and Wolverhampton Wanderers (a 4-0 loss).
A seven-cap United States international comes highly recommended by countryman and former professional 'keeper Matt Pyzdrowski, who is now a coach and analyst, if the following comparisons are anything to go by.
“A really good comparison would be with Brad Friedel, the former USA keeper, who had a heck of a career in the Premier League. He is like a modern version of Brad,” The Athletic's resident goalkeeping analyst says.
Friedel, whose career included spells at Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa and Tottenham, remains the league's record holder for making most consecutive appearances in competition history with a staggering 310.
Pyzdrowski continued: “He is tall, he has great reflexes and is a good shot-stopper — as many American keepers have been.
“But he is modern in the sense that he is not afraid to be aggressive off his line. Brad liked to stick to his line and rely on his shot-stopping.
"Ethan is more comfortable coming off his line, in one-v-one situations and when he has to sweep up behind his back line. In that sense, he reminds me of Nick Pope at Burnley."
