Sporting Lisbon defender Marvin Zeegelaar could be the man to solve Watford head coach Marco Silva's left-back woes, with the Dutch defender strongly linked with the Hornets.

Silva has been left frustrated by the club's lack of options in the position, and was forced to play Miguel Britos on the left of a back four last Saturday, only for the Uruguay defender to get himself sent off, for which he subsequently apologised.

Reports in Portugal suggest a €3-million bid would be enough to convince Sporting to sell their 27-year-old, who has trained separately from the main squad since returning for the start of this season and has not featured in any of their six domestic games to date.

He was close to joining Spanish Champions League qualifiers Sevilla earlier this month, and earlier this week was said to be subject of a loan bid from Championship side Hull City.

While Zeegelaar has been at Sporting for two years, his arrival in Lisbon came shortly after Silva departed the club, and the two have never worked together.

He received a debut call-up to the Netherlands national side in November last year, where he was an unused substitute for two games.

Watford's search for a new defender has grown more desperate in the final days of the transfer window, after a deal for former England full-back Kieran Gibbs fell through yesterday.

The 27-year-old plumped for West Brom over a move to Vicarage Road, with personal terms a sticking point for the ex-Arsenal man.