Nottingham Forest signed Barrie McKay from Scottish Premiership giants Rangers last summer for just £500k – is it clear now why he was so cheap?
Barrie McKay started so well at Nottingham Forest that the £500,000 deal to sign him from Rangers looked like one of the bargains of the season.
The 23-year-old winger scored and assisted six goals in his first seven Championship appearances for Forest, and, according to the Daily Record, McKay had been so impressive at the City Ground that he was already attracting attention from Premier League clubs with top tier scouts making regular visits to the East Midlands.
But that blistering start has hit the buffers. McKay has started just one game since Mark Warburton, who gave the Scotsman his chance at Rangers, was sacked on the turn of the year.
The more pragmatic Aitor Karanka is yet to be won over and has even omitted McKay from his matchday squad on occasion, while publicly criticising a ‘poor’ display in the 3-0 home defeat to Preston in January, the attacker’s only start under the Spanish tactician.
So it is fair to say there will not be many Premier League talent-spotters keeping an eye on McKay right now.
The youngster has much to improve before he can force his way back into the Nottingham Forest side, let alone dream of earning a big move to the top tier of English football.
Fans have questioned his attitude and work rate as well as his end product so how McKay responds to being left out of the side could define his Forest career.
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