Lennon might regret saying that… McGinn and Carver question wisdom of Miller’s ‘best player’ vow
Scotland midfielder John McGinn has insisted rising star Lennon Miller might regret saying he could become his country’s best player — but threw down the gauntlet to the Motherwell skipper to back up his words.
John Carver, Steve Clarke’s assistant coach, had already slapped down the 18-year-old who, after receiving first call-up to the Scotland senior squad, said: ‘I’m obviously not going to go in and be the best player there, but I believe I could maybe in a couple of months be the best player there.’
Carver said the comment was a ‘mistake’ and showed Miller needed ‘a little bit of guidance’.
McGinn added: ‘He’s probably thinking — why did I say that? But I said plenty of stupid things when I was coming through at St Mirren.’
However, McGinn did back Lennon and fellow teenager James Wilson to make an impression ahead of the Nations League play-off double-header with Greece this week.
‘They are not here to make the numbers up,’ he said. ‘They are here to take our places if they, eventually, are better than the ones who are here. He definitely has the ability to do so and so does James.’
Lennon Miller celebrated his Scotland call-up last week after his superb form this season
Miller has trained with the likes of experienced Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn
McGinn broke into the Scotland squad nine years ago when he was with St Mirren
McGinn also recalled the pressure and discomfort he felt at being viewed as a lowly Scottish Championship player when he first broke into the squad nine years ago.
The 30-year-old made his debut against Denmark in March 2016 but his early involvement with the national team was not universally welcomed, given he was in the midst of a two-year spell of playing in his country’s unheralded second tier with Hibernian.
Former Scotland international Charlie Adam — playing in the Premier League with Stoke at the time — gave several interviews throughout 2016 questioning why other less-established midfielders were being selected ahead of him by then manager Gordon Strachan, with McGinn inadvertently a target of his frustration.
Adam, who won his last cap in 2015, was quoted as saying: ‘Scotland see fit to go with players playing in the Championship in Scotland over players who are playing in the Premier League.’
As McGinn prepared for Thursday’s Nations League play-off first leg against Greece in Piraeus, he said: ‘I remember Charlie Adam doing an interview on my first day from Stoke’s training ground asking why there was Scottish Championship players getting called up, which wasn’t too helpful at the time.
‘It was my first lunch at Mar Hall — I remember it — and all the experienced boys were getting right on me, saying: “Look, you shouldn’t be in the squad”. So my session 30 minutes later wasn’t great, it was nerve-wracking.’
McGinn is now a seasoned Premier League operator with Villa, preparing for a Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain next month and one of the most senior members of Steve Clarke’s squad with 73 caps and 20 goals to his name.
The former St Mirren midfielder remains as humble as ever but takes ‘a lot of pride’ from proving his doubters wrong and rising to prominence.
‘I don’t think Charlie was meaning it at me individually or personally at the time, just the timing of it was a bit of a disaster,’ McGinn said of Adam’s comments. ‘I remember going for lunch a wee bit nervous already.
‘But you’ve always got people to try and prove wrong and you’ve got to show people that have a bit of faith in you that you deserve to be there and the decision’s justified. And I think, over time, I managed to show that.
‘I think in Scotland we’re very quick. As soon as a Scotland squad comes out — and that’s something that’s not changed over the last 15 years — to go: “Why is he in it? He should be in it”. It does get a little bit draining rather than people just supporting the boys that are selected and all kind of being together on that.
‘But certainly, at that time, there was a lot of pressure on me and I felt it a little bit. But I remember that first game next to Broonie (Scott Brown), little nuggets of wisdom during the game, support before the game and you start to feel at home.
‘It was a massive jump in my career at the time but it shows anyone now in the Scottish Championship — and I hope that if that arises again, which is a possibility, that there’s not the same pressure put on them.’
