Blackburn Rovers, QPR and Cardiff City will share same Junior Hoilett feeling: View | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers, QPR and Cardiff City fans will have fond memories of winger Junior Hoilett.

Highlights

Junior Hoilett enjoyed successful spells with current Championship clubs Blackburn Rovers, Queens Park Rangers and Cardiff City, playing for all three in the Premier League.

The 34-year-old was the type of player who would excite fans, with his low centre of gravity, ability to win fouls and link-up play making him difficult to defend against throughout his career.

His pace and skillful dribbling have also been key reasons for his success.

While he may not be renowned for being a prolific goalscorer, he has a real eye for the spectacular. He has a catalogue of outstanding goals, and fans of all three clubs are likely to recall at least one special strike.

Hoilett started his career in England with Blackburn

Hoilett, who rejected Manchester United at the age of 12, was first spotted by Premier League scouts during a tournament in Wales while playing for a travelling Canadian team. He spoke to the Lancashire Telegraph in 2010 about why he chose Blackburn over the Red Devils:

"Manchester United was the first club I came on trial to but I decided to come to Blackburn and I liked Blackburn so I came here. I thought there would be more of a chance to break through at Blackburn and the way they talked about looking after me at a young age was fantastic. They did everything they said as well so I don't regret the decision at all. Manchester United were quite keen on me at the time and they asked me back but I had decided to come to Blackburn."

Hoilett was initially unable to get a work permit, which resulted in him spending time on loan in Germany as a teenager, before he was eventually allowed to play in England for Blackburn.

Hoilett spent three seasons in the first-team at Ewood Park, all of which were in the Premier League. He scored an excellent brace against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux in a 3-2 victory that secured survival for Rovers in 2011.

He was only a youngster during his time with Blackburn, but scored 12 goals in the top flight for the club. His most productive season was the 2011/12 campaign, which ended in relegation for Blackburn and proved to be Hoilett's final year at the club.

Hoilett left Blackburn for QPR

Hoilett left Blackburn to join QPR, where he played under manager Neil Warnock for the first time.

Following relegation from the Premier League, he played a key part as QPR bounced back at the first time of asking after beatingDerby County 1-0 in the play-off final at Wembley in 2014.

His hard work and perseverance led to one of the most iconic moments in QPR's history, as he battled hard to get in a cross that was deflected into the path of Bobby Zamora to score the winning goal.

Hoilett reunited with Warnock at Cardiff

Hoilett departed Loftus Road in 2016 and joined Cardiff in the Championship, linking back up with Warnock after their time together at QPR.

He has played under Warnock for QPR, Cardiff and current club Aberdeen, and spoke about the manager when he first arrived in South Wales:

The pair achieved promotion to the Premier League at the end of the 2017/18 season, after Hoilett had scored nine goals and assisted 11 over the course of the campaign.

The winger scored a memorable winning goal for Cardiff against Wolves in one of the Bluebirds' best moments of their season back in the top flight.

He played for Canada at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a highlight in a successful career that Blackburn, QPR and Cardiff fans will feel glad they got to enjoy.

At those three clubs, he is fondly remembered.