Cheltenham Town have confirmed the loan exits of two of their young Robins as Adulai Sambu joins Cirencester Town on loan, and Zac Guinan joins Swindon Supermarine.
The pair leave the club seeking out more first-team minutes in order to continue their development as players, and Sambu joins Cirencester on work experience, as opposed to a short-term loan deal.
Both players featured in Monday’s 3-0 victory over Bristol Rovers Development in the Gloucestershire Senior Cup, with Sambu getting himself an assist on the day, setting up the opening goal.
Zac is the son of Steve Guinan, who was at Cheltenham Town between 2004 and 2007 and is fondly remembered for scoring the winning goal against Grimsby Town in the 2006 League Two play-off final. The youngster was tipped to follow in his dad’s footsteps as he earned his first pro contract last April, before making his debut in the Papa John’s Trophy against Chelsea Under-21’s coming off the bench in the 88th minute and converting his spot kick in a penalty shootout.
Sambu is a second-year scholar with the club and also made his debut in the Papa John’s Trophy against MK Dons last September. During his loan spells with Cirencester, he turned a lot of heads as he scored a hat trick in the FA Trophy for the club.
Guinan has featured in two loan spells for Cirencester Town, but this time Sambu joins the club for the remainder of this season.
Both players will finish the season with their new clubs and will be hoping they can catch Wade Elliot’s eye and earn themselves a chance to break into the first team next season perhaps.
Writers View
The move is good for both players as well as the club, Guinan will no doubt be feeling the pressure of living up to his father’s legacy with the Robins, and a loan move to develop his game will boost his confidence and hopefully provide another top striker for Cheltenham.
As for Sambu, he was particularly impressive in Monday’s cup fixture, and all parties involved in this deal will be hoping they can see that sort of performance on a regular basis from him. The Portuguese youngster is an extremely versatile player featuring as a wing-back primarily, but also able to play on the right-hand side of midfield, and he has even been known to play as a makeshift striker.
