EFL veteran Chris Maguire was taking a leap of faith when he dropped into Non-League with Eastleigh.
Having started out at Aberdeen, the 34-year-old has some of the biggest clubs outside the Premier League on his CV, the likes of Sunderland, Portsmouth and Sheffield Wednesday. With his family based back in his native Scotland, a move to the south coast of England as he nears the end of his career didn’t seem like the most logical move.
But his relationship with Eastleigh’s ambitious owner, former Sunderland chairman Stewart Donald, was instrumental as he decided to drop into England's fifth tier.
READ MORE: 'I left Newcastle just before Saudi takeover – now I want to spring massive FA Cup shock'
READ MORE: Ex-EFL star who served betting ban calls for gambling adverts to be axed from football
Prime Video is available as part of the Amazon Prime membership, which costs £8.99 per month or £95 annually for an individual.
The membership gives access to all the perks of Amazon Prime (including free Premium and Same- Day Delivery in selected residential postcodes, and other benefits) plus the full library of content available through Prime Video.
Prime also offers a discounted membership, Prime Student for higher education students.
You can also sign-up for Prime Video on its own for £5.99 per month, however, you won’t get the other benefits that come with Prime — like free One-Day Delivery and Same-Day Delivery on eligible orders and fast grocery delivery and pickup.
£5.99 per month for Prime Video only, or £8.99 per month for Amazon Prime membership
Much of the Non-League limelight had been hogged by Wrexham and their Hollywood owners prior to their promotion back to the Football League. But Eastleigh, based just outside Southampton, will take centre stage today (Sunday) when they take crisis-hit League One side Reading.
Maguire will be a key man as the Spitfires aim to cause a shock in front of the ITV cameras. He and Donald go back a long way. Maguire played for Oxford while Donald was a shareholder at the club and then played for Sunderland during Donald’s turbulent reign, much of which was chronicled by the Netflix series Sunderland ‘Til I Die.
Is the FA Cup still special for you? Have your say in the comments section below
After Donald completed his takeover of Eastleigh in May, and sold his final shares in the Black Cats, Maguire was one of the first arrivals of Eastleigh’s new era.
“The chairman wants success on the pitch and his main aim is to get the club promoted,” Maguire tells Daily Star Sport. “I’ve known him since he was at Oxford and then Sunderland and had a good relationship with him. He likes me as a player as well, which helps.
“I didn’t know much about the National League when I came here, to be honest. Some of the teams, no disrespect, I hadn’t heard of them and you wonder what sort of style you’ll be coming up against.
“But it’s been surprising because there are some teams in the division that play some good football. It’s not just route one football, which is what people probably think.”
Maguire has had plenty of moves in his career, covering most parts of the country. Some have worked out better than others, but he is happy and settled at Eastleigh, even if it is a long trek from his family home.
“There’s been a few that you look back on over your career and you think that wasn’t the right time or place to go to,” he reflects. “But at the age I’m at, I’m feeling good, I’m fit, I’m playing football, which is still something I love to do.
“The club have been brilliant with me. Being so far away from the kids, the manager [Richard Hill] is good at giving me time off when I need it and the other players understand my situation. It’s a good fit.”
An ambitious non-league club against a struggling EFL outfit – the ingredients are certainly there for an FA Cup shock. Maguire has some simple advice for his younger team-mates ahead of the big match.
Join the Daily Star's WhatsApp for the sexiest headlines, showbiz gossip and lots more
The Daily Star is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join us!
Through the app, we'll send you the sassiest showbiz stories, some naught headline and a seismic smattering of aliens…along with the latest breaking news of course.
To join our community, all you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in!
No one will be able to see who has sign up and no one can send messages except for the Daily Star team. We also treat our community members to competitions, special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.
If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
CLICK HERE TO JOIN
“People know about Reading and their problems over the last couple of seasons,” says Maguire. “Looking at them now, they’re not in the best run of form and they’ve got other stuff going on off the park.
“It’s a good tie for us and the boys will be up for. It’ll be a good, proper FA Cup tie. We’ve just got to try and enjoy it and not get caught up in the occasion.”
Source: Read Full Article
