McGinn hails ‘brave’ Strachan as he eyes regular Scotland spot

JOHN McGINN has praised Gordon Strachan for having the ‘bravery’ to hand him his Scotland debut — and reckons his Aston Villa move can help him cement his international place. The midfielder has heaped praise on all of his former managers and team-mates but believes Strachan and his first Hibernian boss, Alan Stubbs, have played key roles in his development as a player. The 23-year-old sealed his seven-figure switch to Villa on Wednesday to bring to an end three successful years at Easter Road, as well as Celtic’s pursuit of a player Brendan Rodgers had publicly targeted this summer. During his time at Hibs, McGinn helped the club win the Scottish Cup in 2016 for the first time in 114 years and, despite playing in the Championship at the time, made his Scots breakthrough against Denmark just weeks before. The former St Mirren player is in no doubt that Strachan and Stubbs, as well as current Hibs manager Neil Lennon, have been key figures in his career so far. He said: ‘All my former bosses and team-mates have had a massive influence on me in different ways. ‘In the year that I started at Hibs, Stubbs and Strachan were great with me. They started to get people to sit up and take notice. ‘They ignored all the chat that was happening across the media. ‘Strachan was brave enough to put me in the Scotland squad. He really believed in me and I’ll be forever grateful for that. ‘And Stubbs gave me the platform to go and show what I could do. ‘Every manager that I’ve worked under — even Lennon there — was different class. ‘I’m fortunate to have worked under great managers and I’m looking forward to working under another great one.’ Asked how his move to Villa, where he will be under the wing of Steve Bruce, could affect his international ambitions, he added: ‘Hopefully it will benefit it. I’m lucky enough to have nine caps now and it’s something that makes me extremely proud. ‘I’m grateful for the opportunity but I think now it’s time to try to step up and improve and hopefully cement my place in the international squad.’ Lennon has branded McGinn a ‘superstar’ and ‘irreplaceable’, and insists he will rank as one of Hibs’ best players of the last three decades. However, the Scotland star has been more modest in describing his talents to his new club, saying: ‘I’m not sure about a superstar, but I can bring something different.’