22 year old midfielder Kevin McDonald was released by Burnley at the end of the 2010/11 season. A successful trial followed at League 1, Sheffield United leading to a one year contract and he made his début against Brentford on 13 August 2011. McDonald though had a pretty torrid time at Turf Moor following the departure of Owen Coyle during our Premier League season culminating in a spat with replacement gaffer, Brian Laws.
McDonald was disciplined after he chucked a wobbly and disappeared down to the KCS 110 club at half-time during the game against Manchester City at Turf Moor. The story goes that his father who was in the club told his son to get a grip and sent him back to the club a few minutes later but the damage had already been done. He had been substituted after a disastrous 45 minutes by the team in which we went into the break already 5-0 down and appeared to be somewhat aggrieved by the decision. The match would finish 6-1 in City`s favour and it would also effectively finish Big Kev`s career at Burnley!
Last season, Laws dispatched him out on loan to Scunthorpe for a month in October 2010 and it would soon be Laws who would be dispatched after being sacked by the Board following ironically a shocking performance and 2-0 home defeat at home against The Iron in December 2010! The new gaffer Eddie Howe effectively wiped the slate clean on his arrival and was prepared to give McDonald another chance but opportunities were limited and another loan followed in February 2011 when he signed for Notts County until the end of the season. The decision was made in the summer though to release McDonald and he left without too much concern from the fans! There is no doubt he is a talented prospect but he simply failed to deliver and seemed to have his mind elsewhere following the departure of Coyle. He will always be remembered though for the damage he inflicted on Arsenal in the Carling Cup Quarter Final clash at Turf Moor back in December 2008. We beat the Gunners young talent 2-0 and both goals were scored by Kevin McDonald!
So how well will McDonald perform for the Blades? Well former gaffer, Brian Laws has been giving his views on the prospect and been quite positive about his chances suggesting United boss, Danny Wilson could be the boss to resurrect McDonald`s career.
Speaking to the Sheffield Telegraph he said:
“Kevin has everything in his locker to be a top player.
“He`s very, very talented. It`s just a case of unlocking that potential and maybe Danny Wilson will be the man to do it.
“Kevin can be anything he wants to be in the game. He`s big, strong, can handle the ball in any situation and get a goal.
“The trouble is that he hasn`t produced on a more consistent basis. One of the weaknesses is that he he switches off at times – and that`s not great for your team. He can let a runner go from midfield, for instance.
“But I know Kevin`s been working on that and if he can get that part of his game right then he certainly has the skill to go higher. He can manipulate the ball so well, see a pass. There`s flair in his game. And he`s still young enough to iron out any flaws and develop his talent.”
So what do Clarets fans think about McDonald`s chances, could he eventually make it and remedy the past faults both in terms of mental attitude and consistency on the pitch? Let us have your views below this article.
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