Nottingham Forest fans have responded with mixed views after former favourite Lewis McGugan revealed the heartache of a promising career that fizzled out by the age of 29.
Now, four years on, the 33-year-old has opened up about exactly what went wrong. McGugan was a key player for the Reds, having come up through the youth ranks to break into the first team before going o to enjoy success under Gianfranco Zola at Watford and initially flourished at Sheffield Wednesday. It all ended at Scunthorpe in a game in which once the final whistle had blown he knew it was over.
He told this week’s Garibaldi Red podcast it was a relief to accept the end after a nightmare spell at Wednesday - where he was frozen out for a year - damaged his mental health and changed him as a person, as he tried to explain just what went wrong.
READ MORE: Lewis McGugan explains the collapse of his career and why he really left Nottingham Forest
“There’s so many elements to it. Is there stuff I could have done better? Could I have made different decisions? One hundred percent. There’s also stuff I had to go through. My time at Sheffield Wednesday ruined my career,” he said.
Here’s what Forest fans have been saying about the tragic tale of a career cut short.
Richie Reardon: Lewis put bums on seats, terrific player on his day .. always enjoyed watching him play.
Trendenders: Loved watching Lewis play, his ability during his time at Forest was top draw and it’s a shame that his career didn’t pan out the way we expected. Best of luck to him and I certainly wish him well.
Jelbs: I admired Lewis when he played for us, I was in awe. To actually play on the hallowed turf is a dream come true for us reds but footballers just take it for granted. I watched Lewis a few times in pre match warm up, found him lazy if I’m honest. Like he didn’t want to be there but still take the wage. He could’ve had it all.
Joe Summerhill: He should never have left Forest. He went downhill massively after that.
Ed Walker: I had a picture taken with him after a game once, he couldn’t even be bothered to speak to me. I wonder how much his downfall was due to his own poor attitude?
WibblyWobbly: A very natural talent scored one the best goals I’ve ever seen in my time as a fan. Unfortunately he had “issues” with his attitude. It all started to go downhill when he let his fitness slip he never really recovered from there. Shame he realised a bit late.
RattonRed: Things were in meltdown under Fawaz and Billy. It certainly seems different now. Sad that players who were a big part of the club and wanted to play for Forest then got treated so badly.
You can listen to the full interview with Lewis here, or watch it here.
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