The Cardiff City defender was a hugely popular figure during his half-season loan spell at Hillsborough last term and is set to come up against Sheffield Wednesday this weekend
They say you should never fall in love with a loan player. But for a large portion of Sheffield Wednesday supporters, last season saw them fall into this trap.
Mark McGuinness played a grand total of just 24 games for the club but the success of his temporary stint at Hillsborough means his popularity will stay sky-high for a good while yet.
McGuinness was a Rolls Royce of a defender, brought in on a season-long loan a year ago this week. He was on the losing side in a league game only once, and it can surely be no coincidence the team kept clean sheets in more than half the games he featured.
There was massive disappointment when his loan was ended abruptly by parent club Cardiff City in January. The Bluebirds activated a break clause in the agreement and he would go on to play his part in helping them stave off relegation from the Championship.
McGuinness will come up against the Owls this weekend when Xisco Munoz takes his team to South Wales. It will be a sorry sight for Wednesdayites to see the talented centre-half up against them.
There were feint hopes of a reunion in the summer following the Owls’ promotion but it was always unlikely given Cardiff’s high valuation of the ex-Arsenal man. Then manager Darren Moore, speaking just days after promotion, said: “Speaking truthfully, Mark is not somebody that we have spoken about at any great length.”
Last week saw the 22-year-old pen a long-term extension at Cardiff with his new menager Erol Bulut confirming they rebuffed plenty of offers over the summer. It is believed Wednesday were one of the teams who made an enquiry but were promptly told the defender was not for sale.
“We’ve tried really hard to renew Macca’s contract,” said Bulut. “He’s a really good player, 22,] with the potential to play in the Premier League. He had many offers, but we are glad to sign him. He’s one of the players we can build around. He has many years ahead of him.”
Wednesdayites might have only had a brief glimpse of McGuinness but better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.
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