Watford midfielder Tom Dele-Bashiru has completed a season-long loan move to Turkish Super Lig side Gençlerbirliği SK, linking up with fellow Nigerians Henry Onyekuru and Peter Etebo.
Championship club Watford confirmed the deal on Friday night, with Gençlerbirliği announcing the transfer on their X account.
The 25-year-old, who joined Watford from Manchester City in 2019, has struggled for game time under Paulo Pezzolano. He has made just one league appearance this season, as a substitute against QPR, and featured in the Carabao Cup defeat to Norwich, where he was taken off at half-time.
𝐇𝐎𝐒̧ 𝐆𝐄𝐋𝐃𝐈̇𝐍 𝐓𝐎𝐌 𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐄 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐔⚡️ pic.twitter.com/oiJabDe8Ko
— Gençlerbirliği SK (@kirmizikara) September 12, 2025
Dele-Bashiru has managed 81 appearances and eight goals in his stop-start Watford career, though he enjoyed his best form last season, playing 38 times under Tom Cleverley. That run earned him a two-year contract extension until 2026.
Tom Dele-Bashiruom Dele-Bashiru played for the Flying Eagles and Dream team scoring against Qatar at the 2019 U20 World Cup. Photo Credit: Getty Images
The midfielder, capped at youth level by Nigeria but still awaiting a senior call-up, will hope his loan spell in Turkey revives his career.
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At Gençlerbirliği, he joins Onyekuru, who arrived this summer after leaving Saudi club Al Fayha, and Etebo, a key player in last season’s promotion campaign but currently sidelined after Achilles surgery.
Dele-Bashiru’s younger brother, Fisayo, has enjoyed a rapid rise. After leaving Sheffield Wednesday for Hatayspor in 2023, he impressed in Turkey and earned his first senior Nigeria cap later that year.
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The 24-year-old midfielder, now a regular in the Super Eagles squad, secured a permanent move to Serie A side Lazio this summer.
