Born on this day in 1989 is former Sunderland forward Chris Maguire. The Scotsman was at Sunderland between 2018 and 2021, failing to get the club promoted from League One.
Maguire began his career at Aberdeen, where after a loan spell to Kilmarnock he moved South of the border, joining Derby County in the Championship. He had an instant impact when he scored on his first start- a 3-1 win over Portsmouth. He received praise for his patience and work ethic, after initially being kept out of the side by fellow strikers Jamie Ward, Theo Robinson and Steve Davies.
However, the forward fell down the pecking order and was loaned to Championship strugglers Pompey on a month-long emergency loan. Maguire received praise from Portsmouth manager Michael Appleton, and hoped for an extension on his loan. He stayed at Fratton Park until the end of the season, scoring three goals in 11 appearances and becoming somewhat of a fan favourite among Pompey supporters.
Newly-promoted Sheffield Wednesday signed Maguire permanently in June 2012, after being transfer listed by Derby. He became a regular in the side, and arguably played some of his best football during his time at Hillsborough. However, he had to wait for opportunities to arise- he didn’t score his first goal for the club until the 92nd minute of a 2-1 win at Millwall, which came all the way in April 2013.
In the 2014/15 season, Maguire scored a total of eight goals as Sheff Wed finished 13th. However, he claimed he had begun to feel unwanted by the club and rejected a new contract. The sacking of manager Stuart Gray was the final straw for Maguire, who left on a free transfer to Rotherham in the summer. He played just 14 times for the Millers, including eight appearances off the bench. He failed to find the net at all. During this period, Maguire joined former boss Michael Appleton at Oxford United on a two-month loan deal in November 2015. After the loan ended, Maguire’s contract was mutually terminated at Rotherham and he joined Oxford permanently on the same day.
He scored four league goals for Appleton’s side, which all came in the last six games of the season as Oxford won promotion to League One. In the following season, 2016/17, Maguire scored a sublime 17 goals. A career best for a single season. Despite being loved at Oxford (particularly by Stewart Donald!), Maguire refused to sign a new deal and left in an ill-fated move to Bury.
The club were is a disastrous financial situation, with wages being paid late and the team unable to fulfil its fixtures. He became a figure of hate from the stands, with Bury fans seeing Maguire as a symbol of all the misdoings behind the scenes. He was criticised for his poor attitude, and managed just two goals and a solitary assist during his time at Gigg Lane.
That’s why it came as a surprise, and an uninspiring signing, when recently-relegated Sunderland snapped up the Scotsman in June 2018. His debut got off to a poor start, tripping Charlton striker Karlan Grant in the box to give away a 10th minute penalty. However, Maguire quickly endeared himself to Sunderland fans. His first goal came in a comprehensive 3-0 win against Scunthorpe, with a smart back-heel.
Maguire finished the 2017/18 season with 7 goals, including an absolute rocket against Southend from distance. The lads headed into the play-offs, to a crunch tie against Portsmouth. In the first leg, Maguire scored a great volley that sent the SoL into elation, and the lads managed to hold onto the win, heading to Fratton Park for the second leg. Despite disappointment in the eventual final, Maguire was key in helping Sunderland get to Wembley for the second time that season.
Nicknamed ‘The King’, Maguire continued to be a key part in proceedings even when Phil Parkinson replaced Jack Ross. Despite the season being curtailed due to Covid, he broke his goalscoring tally from the prior season, netting 10 times in the league. This included an impressive hat trick in a 3-1 win over Wimbledon. The most impressive goal was the first of the three, latching onto a long ball and lobbing keeper Nathan Trott after just eight minutes. When Parkinson froze Aiden McGeady out of the squad, Chris filled the creative void and was probably our best player during a very dark period in the club's history.
However, the arrival of Lee Johnson spelled the end for Maguire, who was bafflingly exiled from the starting 11. Johnson’s first game in charge, a 1-0 loss at home to Wigan, was actually the last time Maguire started a game until the play-offs. He was limited to cameos from the bench, which was surprising because the mercurial forward always looked like creating a chance when on the pitch. Despite fans’ outcry for creativity, Johnson stuck to his guns and continued to leave Maguire out, even after scoring a screamer against Crewe in the 2-2 comeback.
When it came to the play-offs, Sunderland were 2-0 down in the first leg, yet LJ refused to bring on Maguire. Much to fans’ relief, the Scot was reintroduced to the side for the second leg, and ran himself into the ground as Sunderland clawed it back to 2-2. Of course we went on to concede, and lost 3-2 on aggregate with the young Jack Diamond replacing Maguire after 65 minutes...
It was inevitable that Maguire was going to leave at the end of the season, and re-joined Michael Appleton for the third time at Lincoln. Despite not having the best start to this season, it was equally inevitable that he would come back to haunt us. He scored a hat trick at the SoL, celebrating his first goal by running up to Johnson who had thrown him out of the club unceremoniously.
Hindsight is of course 20/20 but we cannot forget the impact Maguire had on Wearside. 'The King' was a mercurial talent on Wearside, who might only put in one good performance every couple of games but is unbeatable when at his best. That’s what made him a fan favourite during his time at Sunderland, but it’s also why fans of sides such as Bury grew to become frustrated with the forward- and why he couldn’t keep the consistency for a full season, and boost Sunderland to the Championship.
It's very interesting to see Sunderland and Maguire's trajectories since the breakup. We've gone from strength to strength and now look a capable top-end Championship side, with a togetherness and team spirit that just never seemed to exist in League One. Meanwhile, Maguire was sacked by Lincoln for breaching betting rules, signed for Hartlepool who were willing to take a risk on him, but never played a game due to the betting ban hanging over his head.
