Loan watch: Grujic helps Cardiff stay in touch with Wolves
Marko Grujic completed 180 minutes over Easter weekend as Cardiff City kept in touch with Wolves at the summit of the Championship ahead of Friday’s meeting between the division’s top two.
On-loan Liverpool midfielder Grujic played the full match as Cardiff extended their winning run in the second tier to eight matches with a 3-1 victory over Burton Albion last Friday, before doing the same in their 1-1 draw at Sheffield United on Monday.
Anthony Pilkington’s injury-time equaliser at Bramall Lane means Neil Warnock’s side now sit five points adrift of table-topping Wolves, who host Harry Wilson’s Hull City on Tuesday night before visiting the Welsh capital later in the week.
Wilson, meanwhile, heads to Molineux this evening having being withdrawn 13 minutes from time in Hull’s goalless draw with fourth-placed Aston Villa on Saturday.
Elsewhere in the Championship, Jon Flanagan played in Bolton Wanderers’ 2-1 loss to Leeds United on Friday and could be back in action tonight when Phil Parkinson’s team face fellow strugglers Birmingham City.
Ryan Kent came off the bench in both games in Bristol City’s draws with Barnsley and Brentford, while Ovie Ejaria appeared as a late substitute as Sunderland lost 3-1 to Sheffield Wednesday.
On the continent, Divock Origi featured as a sub in Wolfsburg’s 0-0 draw with Hertha BSC and Pedro Chirivella started as Willem II boosted their hopes of avoiding relegation from the Eredivisie by beating Utrecht 3-2.
Meanwhile, in Belgium, Taiwo Awoniyi scored as Royal Excel Mouscron defeated Lierse 3-0 and Lazar Markovic came off the bench in Anderlecht’s 2-0 defeat to Gent.
Two of Liverpool’s Academy players also played for their loan clubs over the weekend. Matty Virtue played as Notts County lost 1-0 to Accrington Stanley, while Andy Firth featured in Chester’s reverses to Torquay United and Macclesfield.