Fine-tuning my attacking instincts has helped me hit new heights
JOHN McGINN knows how he’s perceived. All action, high energy and ‘a rat and a runner’. McGinn is being unduly harsh on himself but he uses the phrase advisedly. Until very recently, it’s how he used to view himself. Yet since moving to Aston Villa, and especially after stepping up to the Premier League this season, McGinn’s game has undergone a transformation.
He remains one of the most dynamic midfielders in the British game but, where he would once chase every lost cause and loose ball, he now thinks about when to stand off the game.
This new appreciation for space has allowed him to operate in a more advanced role for his Villa manager Dean Smith, one that allows him to get involved in the more subtle moments of the game.
‘If you had asked me a couple of years ago, I’d probably have laughed at you if you thought I could play there,’ says McGinn, who has claimed five Scotland goals this season following his effort in yesterday’s 2-1 win over Cyprus.
‘I probably got sucked into the idea that I was just a rat and a runner but Dean Smith gave me the confidence to go and get involved higher up the park and I feel as if I’m enjoying it.’
Self-deprecation is an admirable McGinn trait but his manager has been urging him to exude more self-confidence in his game.
The former Brentford boss shares McGinn’s common touch and, after succeeding Steve Bruce in October of last year, helped him reach new heights as part of a promotion-winning team.
‘The manager has been brilliant,’ adds McGinn. ‘When he came in, I remember him saying to me: “You need to be more arrogant”.
‘I’m not an arrogant person but he said that when you go on the park you need to believe and trust in yourself, and show a bit
of character.’
He’s taken the message on board but, away from the pitch, refuses to take himself too seriously.
It was the Hibernian fans who first sang of McGinn being better than Zinedine Zidane and the Villa support has taken the chant to a wider audience. ‘They only sing that because the syllables fit!’ he laughs.
McGinn’s army of admirers is strong and stretches well beyond the Midlands.
Reliable accounts say Sir Alex Ferguson wishes Manchester United had made a pitch to sign the player and talk of an eye-popping £50million bid emerged after his excellent start to the campaign.
Sir Alex isn’t the only knight of the realm to offer an endorsement. After watching McGinn against Liverpool earlier this month, Kenny Dalglish spoke of his new appreciation for the player having seen him in the flesh.
Don’t worry about his head being turned. McGinn remains the same grounded lad that first broke through at St Mirren, even as his stats threaten the Premier League’s top 10 in almost every aspect of midfield play.
One of the most striking aspects of his game this term has been his willingness to shoot. After scoring arguably the goal of last season with a 25-yard ping that crashed in off the crossbar against Sheffield Wednesday, this formerly shot-shy player feels far more confident in front of goal.
McGinn has scored three times for his club this season and a first Scotland goal against Russia was quickly followed by that treble against San Marino and yesterday’s winner in Cyprus.
‘I get pelters off the lads for shooting all the time but I need to get the fantasy points up,’ he quips.
Yet there is more structure to McGinn’s game now, certainly more than there ever was when he made himself such a favourite at Easter Road.
Plenty of discerning observers who watched Hibs regularly under Alan Stubbs and Neil Lennon actually preferred the tidier passing game of his midfield foil Dylan McGeouch and the 25-year-old is refreshingly honest in addressing the flaws in his game.
There have been conflicting reports over why a proposed move to Celtic collapsed but, despite later insisting he was desperate to add him to his squad, Brendan Rodgers tended to be unforthcoming when asked to speak of McGinn’s threat whenever his team faced Hibs.
That matters little now as Rodgers, Celtic and McGinn have all moved on happily since the £2.75m transfer that was finally struck between Hibs and Villa in August of last year.
‘I think my last game with Hibs was probably the most erratic I’ve been,’ he reflects. ‘At times with Hibs, I maybe tried to do a lot of things myself and I probably was not as well-drilled and coached as I am now.
‘Obviously that’s a good thing. I’ve learned more about the game and try to pick the times to go and chase the opponents. I used to do that too much.
‘You’re not allowed to do it (at Villa). You have a certain role in the team.
‘I’m learning all the time, just listening to the coaches.’
McGinn is eager to add the bits of knowledge and awareness that will improve his game is equally determined not to lose the essence of what makes him such a compelling player.
‘It’s hard to get the right balance, especially with the way I play,’ he explains. ‘I don’t want to lose what I’m known for, with the energy and bustle.
‘You need to make sure you stay the same kind of player but just fine tune it. Down south, you see players get older, they get that coaching and become scared to do things.
‘I’m keen not to be overly coached. I want to learn but keep separating myself from other players in the league because I feel as if I can offer something different.’
The issue of call-offs dominated in the build-up to the Cyprus game with the majority of the squad’s Premier League players failing to make the trip to the Mediterranean island.
The episode has hardly done anything to improve the reputation of the Scottish game, something McGinn has found himself immensely protective of since crossing the border. Permanently tuned into the Scottish scene, the midfielder admits he takes some stick at Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training base for his patriotic streak.
Yet when he sees Celtic defeating Lazio on Italian soil and Rangers taking care of Porto at Ibrox, his heart swells with pride.
‘The boys down the road get sick and tired of me trying to boost Scottish football, they are quick to put it down,’ says McGinn.
‘It doesn’t hurt me because it gives me motivation to go and prove them wrong.
‘I don’t think we’ll ever change English people’s view of Scottish football but results like Celtic and
Rangers’ in Europe helps at Friday morning training an awful lot.
‘There’s nobody more desperate to succeed for Scotland. As a young player, you dream of playing for your country. I was lucky enough to go and watch the games as a kid and I am passionate about it.
‘The big thing for me is I’m craving success with Scotland to finally go down the road with a smile on my face.’
The boss gave me the confidence to be more involved higher up the park