Derby County should join Sean Maguire chase four years after fate intervened

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Linked with Celtic and West Ham United, Sean Maguire could have been a Derby County player all the way back in 2013.

Sean Maguire could be forgiven for wishing fate had not intervened to prevent him from moving to Derby County in 2013. According to Goal, a waterlogged pitch meant an FAI Cup fixture had to be rescheduled, meaning the highly-rated 18-year-old was denied the chance to impress The Rams’ chiefs on a trial.

Instead, the Republic of Ireland youth moved to West Ham instead. Though after failing to make a single appearance in two years, he was released at Upton Park and returned to his homeland in 2015.

Now, two years on, a second stab at the big time beckons. The Scottish Sun report that former employers West Ham are keen to give the 22-year-old another chance while Celtic are also interested on the back of 28 goals in his last 43 league games for Cork City.

Four years after rain stopped play, however, now appears to be the perfect time for Derby to finally get their man. Rams manager Gary Rowett insisted recently that the club may be casting their net wide in search for new players, with non-league a market he is keen to tap into, the Derby Telegraph reports.

However, as the likes of Shane Long and Kevin Doyle have proved in seasons gone by, the League of Ireland is home to some impressive young forwards deserving of an opportunity at a higher level.

And Maguire certainly falls into that category. Derby’s goalscoring problems are well established with the pre-season promotion favourites stuck in mid-table thanks to a tally of 53 Championship strikes – a record bettered by Nottingham Forest and Bristol City.

Beyond 13-goal winger Tom Ince, Darren Bent is the only Derby player to hit double figures this season, and he is out of contract in the summer.

Therefore, they could do worse than to put their faith in Maguire. The Irish Sun report that Cork City’s talisman has a release clause of just £126,000, meaning he would hardly be another expensive Derby flop.