The Sheffield Wednesday midfielder thought he had the last laugh over Derby County, which he described as “a bit weird” when he heard jeers directed at him.
Yesterday, Bannan’s 35th birthday coincided with their 2-1 victory, and he scored a fantastic goal to tie the score.
In what was a victorious return to Pride Park, where he had been on loan from Aston Villa as a 20-year-old, Bannan led the celebrations after Jamal Lowe scored the game-winning goal in the 94th minute. According to Bannan, he had a great time while on loan at the Rams and did not see why he was being singled out.
“I had a bee in my bonnet at half-time,” Bannan told BBC Sheffield post-match. “The Derby fans were battering me in the first half and got me booked – so I miss the next game, maybe – so I had a personal vendetta in the second half to come out and do something special and luckily the chance broke to me at the edge of the box and I capitalised.
“I enjoyed my spell when I was here when I was younger, it was a bit weird that they were booing me and hammering me to be honest – hence why the celebration was so dramatic. When fans give you it you have got to give a bit back so I was happy to go and celebrate with my fans in the crowd.
