"It would have to be a lot" - Duncan McGuire offers Blackburn Rovers transfer hint | OneFootball

The forward was set to sign for the Lancashire outfit on deadline day of the winter window, but a failure to send the required paperwork to the EFL in time meant the deal collapsed - with a key official at Ewood Park only saving the documents and not sending them.

McGuire was forced to return to MLS side Orlando City, where he is expected to depart this summer, having turned down a fresh contract offer.

The striker is attracting interest from a number of clubs across Europe, with Rovers having kept tabs on his progress since the January deadline passed.

Blackburn had initially agreed a £2.3 million deal with Orlando before the Venky's ordered all deals with transfer fees involved to be halted, before it was re-negotiated to become a loan deal with a £3.6 million option to buy.

Duncan McGuire opens up on failed Blackburn move

McGuire has claimed that he was very disappointed by the club’s failure to send the necessary paperwork in on time.

And he seemingly offered up a future transfer hint; that it will take a lot for Blackburn to convince him to agree to sign for the club again due to what happened earlier in the year, but refused to rule it out entirely.

"It's tough to say," said McGuire, via Goal.

"That was a pretty bad mistake, a pretty bad mistake by them.

“I'd be open to maybe having a conversation but it would have to be a lot to get me to go back there.

"On the plane ride back, I just felt like my tail was between my legs.

“I asked my agent how often this happens and he was like 'This doesn't happen'.

"I didn't burn bridges with my teammates or have it be like 'Oh you wanted to leave and now you're back'.

“When I got back, it was like I never left."

McGuire’s future remains up in the air, but it does look as though Rovers will at least try to make another approach for the USA international, with reports suggesting that an official will be scouting the striker once more in the near future in Orlando.

The failure to sign McGuire led to the departure of Jon Dahl Tomasson as manager, with the Dane falling out with the club shortly after the January window closed.

John Eustace was installed as his replacement and was tasked with keeping the Lancashire side in the Championship for another year.

Rovers were in danger of suffering relegation to League One, but Eustace oversaw a 19th place finish in the table.

A final day victory over Leicester City proved enough to ensure their safety in the second tier of English football.

Eustace will now be planning for his first full season in charge at Ewood Park, as he eyes potential squad improvements in the summer market.

Duncan McGuire failure needs to be a wake-up call for Blackburn Rovers

The fact this wasn’t the first botched transfer saga involving Blackburn in recent years was the worst part of all this for the club, with Lewis O'Brien being another key name that failed to arrive due to goings on behind the scenes.

Rovers made themselves a laughing stock for their administrative ineptitude, and this should have been the signal that change is needed behind the scenes.

Those changes are seemingly in the works, with secretary Ian Silvester replaced and director of football Gregg Broughton gone, but only time will tell if lessons have been learned.

McGuire has every reason to want to avoid signing for Blackburn after such a fiasco, and he will likely have no shortage of other options this summer if he does intend to move from Orlando.