Profiling Mark McGuinness: The Hatters New Defensive Signing
Luton have brought in a fourth summer signing this week with the addition of Irish defender Mark McGuinness. The 23-year-old central defender has joined the Hatters on a permanent deal from Cardiff City.
The former Arsenal academy man joined Cardiff in the summer of 2021 and made 35 appearances for the Bluebirds in his first season before being loaned out to Sheffield Wednesday for the 2022/23 season.
Since returning from his loan, the right-footed defender has featured 51 times for Cardiff, including 30 appearances in the Championship last season, scoring twice.
mcguinness’ championship stats (Sofascore)
In his 30 Championship appearances last season, including 29 starts, McGuinness helped his Cardiff side to eight clean sheets and was a key player in defence, winning 68% of his aerial duels.
He averaged 4 clearances and 1.3 interceptions per game, whilst only being dribbled past 0.8 times per game across the 30 appearances he made.
The 23-year-old is a competent passer of the ball and averaged 39.4 (85%) accurate passes per game, creating one big chance.
Big loss for cardiff
Cardiff City fan, Tomas Taylor has bittersweet feelings about the departure of the defender and felt he was future captain material in South Wales.
Tomas said: “I’m quite gutted that we’re losing Mark McGuinness, but when a big bid like that comes in for him you have to take the money.
“When he first came in I thought he would end up being Cardiff City captain one day, the maturity he has at such a young age is unbelievable. He’s an old school kind of centre half, and would be a fantastic asset to most teams in the league. If there’s a ball being floated into the box, you know he’ll be there to head it out or put his body on the line to block a shot. Granted he’s not the best on the ball, which is why I think he’s fallen out of favour a bit at Cardiff and why he lost his spot in the team, but I still think he’ll be a great signing for Luton.
“He’s only going to go from strength to strength in my opinion, and he’s scored one or two important goals for us during his time in South Wales too! There’s absolutely no hard feelings my end, and it feels quite bittersweet to see him go, but I hope he has a successful and great career at Luton.
“Best of luck, Mark!”
Where does mcguinness fit?
At 6’4 McGuinness adds significant height to the Luton defence and will likely slot into the middle of the back three, with Mengi moving to the right and Walters to wing-back, providing a more defensive option than Ogbene in wide areas.
The move would also allow Ogbene to play further forward and utilise his attacking abilities, stretching defences and causing problems in wide areas.
The Irishman can also play in a back four and has previously lined up as on the left and right side of central defence.
The addition of McGuinness provides additional defensive depth, crucial in a 46-game Championship season, particularly given Luton’s struggles with injuries to central defenders last season and the initial stages of this season.
