Championship duo Aston Villa and Cardiff City went head-to-head to sign Marko Grujic on loan from Premier League giants Liverpool in January.
There were no shortage of takers when it became clear that Serbian starlet Marko Grujic was set to leave Liverpool on loan during the January transfer window.
Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce is a big fan of the dynamic midfielder and had hoped to lure him to the Midlands last month, according to the Liverpool Echo. A move to Villa looked to be on the cards with Liverpool keen for Grujic to join a Championship club in order to maximise his chances of first-team football.
However, the former Red Star Belgrade wonder-kid, who Liverpool paid £5.1 million for, would instead join promotion rivals Cardiff City instead.
And it is no coincidence that, since Grujic’s arrival in South Wales, Neil Warnock’s Cardiff have found their form again and reignited their promotion push.
Grujic shone once more as the Bluebirds defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 on Saturday, following on from excellent performances in a routine home win against Bolton and a 4-1 destruction of Leeds United at Elland Road.
Aston Villa fans will not need reminding of the irony that a player they missed out on only last month has now helped his new side nick that coveted second automatic promotion position behind runaway leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Villa, meanwhile, lost for the first time in the league this year thanks to a 2-0 defeat to Fulham in which Conor Hourihane and Birkir Bjarnason toiled in central midfield.
We are not suggesting Grujic alone would have changed the game but Villa were missing a complete midfielder with the Serbian’s energy in the centre of the park. Though it is fair to say the Cardiff fans are pleased he is honing his trade in South Wales rather than the Second City.
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