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McSheffrey: Back in familiar surroundings
They, whoever they may be, say never go back, with a return to old stomping grounds rarely as productive the second time around.
It is often best to let bygones be bygones, safeguard the fond memories of the past and move on to pastures new.
Occasionally, though, this trend is bucked and the decision is taken to take in a second spell at a certain club, regardless of the repercussions.
These emotional homecomings can go one of two ways, with a legacy either enhanced further or a once glorious reputation left in tatters.
You buy your ticket, you take chances and whatever will be will be.
Gary McSheffrey found himself at this particular lottery counter over the summer as he dipped his toe in the free agent market.
Having been released by Birmingham City and seen Leeds United opt against turning a loan deal into a permanent move, the 28-year-old found himself without a club.
Fortunately for him, an impressive CV and a reputation forged over the years as a goalscoring wideman ensured that he was not left treading water for long.
Coventry City soon came calling, offering him another shot at life in the Championship at a forward-thinking club.
McSheffrey had no hesitation in accepting their call and signed himself up at the Ricoh Arena.
This was, however, to be the second time he had joined the Sky Blues' ranks, having begun his professional career with his hometown club.
Confidence
During that first spell he burst onto the scene as a prodigious teenage talent, briefly held the honour of being the youngest Premier League player after making his debut while still only 16 and moulded himself into a highly-regarded Football League forward.
Few held it against him when he moved on to Birmingham City in 2006, with the big money on offer and the opportunity to push on into the Premier League too good an opportunity to turn down.
Things did not go entirely to plan for McSheffrey from there on in, with injuries taking their toll and a tumble down the St Andrews pecking order seeing him become something of a forgotten man.
Four years on all that has been forgotten, though, with confidence restored and a comfy seat back in familiar surroundings secured.
McSheffrey has settled quickly back into life at Coventry, scoring five goals already, and insists he was always confident that his decision to return to his roots would be a success.
"I don't think it would have been a problem wherever I went, but it was nice to come somewhere where you already know the place, so it's been good and quite easy in that way," he told skysports.com's Chris Burton.
"I knew I would settle in well. There was a lot of umming and arring over the summer as to whether I would be fit and whether I would be able to play, but that was a load of nonsense in my opinion.
"I just needed to get back playing, come back to Coventry, have a good season and get fully fit again. That was my aim and so far it has been good."
McSheffrey initially signed up for 12 months back with the Sky Blues, but that agreement includes the option of a second year should certain criteria be met.
"It's not really a case of if I do well, it's just the second year kicking in is a personal term," he said on what he has to do in order to earn another year.
"It's not really an option on the club's behalf, it's just a set amount of games and then it will kick in. We will have to see what happens."
Tight
It would appear that an extension is in the pipeline at present, with McSheffrey having helped Coventry secure a standing alongside the Championship frontrunners.
The second tier remains intriguingly-poised, with just 10 points separating Cardiff City in second from Barnsley in 12th.
A fifth-placed standing is not to be sniffed at, though, and McSheffrey is confident Aidy Boothroyd's side can push on from here.
He said: "It's really close so anyone that wins two on the spin is back up there, and that's what we've done in the last week. We are back into fifth so we are in a good position heading into December. That's the sort of position you want to be in."Before winning their last two games, Coventry had lost three in a row and McSheffrey admits it was vital they responded positively to those setbacks.
He added: "Within a week we lost three in a row and found ourselves slipping down the table, but if we could have turned a couple of those defeats into a win or a draw and had more points on the board, we could have been in an even better position.
"That was a bad week for us but we didn't play too badly and we have bounced back well from it."
The Sky Blues are also happy to have slipped under the radar this season, with few people talking up their promotion credentials despite their consistencies this term.
McSheffrey said: "I think it does help. I think that is just a general trend, Coventry aren't a place that everyone talks about. Clubs like Cardiff that have been there or thereabouts, clubs that have high-profile players, they get spoken about a lot.
"We aren't too bothered, we will happily just sit in the background and be up there and be ready to kick on. We will know when the right time is to try and kick on.
"If you look at the history of the Championship clubs, we are up there and are easily one of the biggest clubs in the league. For people not to be taking us seriously, that does suit us because we know we are a decent club, with a decent set of lads and good players.
"We are sleeping giants in this division really. We have been here 10 years now. We are quite confident in our ability and what we can do this season, but we are happy to do it in a quiet way."
Experience
There is no doubting that the rebuilding of Coventry has taken longer than many of their supporters would have hoped, with the days when the club were a top flight mainstay now a distant memory.
Times are changing, though, and the squad pieced together by Boothroyd appears, finally, to be capable of competing for a return to the big time.
"If you look at our bench on Saturday (against Scunthorpe) the manager had a lot of choice, Freddy Eastwood and Lukas Jutkiewicz came on and David Bell was on the bench, Carl Baker was on the bench. In the next couple of weeks we will have Sammy Clingan back in the squad after injury and hopefully we are not too far away from having Ben Turner back.
"We have got a decent squad and if you can get a good core of 20 players that are all good enough to do a job in the team, you can cope with injuries and suspension without a problem."
The Sky Blues also have plenty of Championship pedigree at their disposal, and that is always a useful asset to have when attempting to negotiate a notoriously difficult division.
McSheffrey said: "There is massive experience. There are players that have played in the Championship a lot and there are players like Lee Carsley who has spent most of his career in the Premier League, so there is huge experience. Michael Doyle has just come back into the team and he's pushing 350 games in the Championship.
"There is good experience and a lot of the team are at a good age as well so there's a good mixture of experience and youth. We have got a solid base that we can build on, and we are still building as we have got a relatively new squad. It has come to the stage this season where we are getting a settled team and everyone is fighting for places, it's healthy competition."
It is now all about maintaining standards for Coventry, with McSheffrey well aware that any slip-ups, especially over the busy festive period, could cost the club dear and dash their promotion dreams.
He said: "There are probably about 10 teams in the league that have got a genuine chance of being up there. There are a lot of good clubs in the league.
"QPR have been pushing on a bit but no-one is really dominating. It's there for the taking for a lot of clubs so we have to make sure we are one of those clubs and deal with that sort of pressure. We feel that we are good enough and have a good enough squad to compete, so that's our aim."
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