OLD stories about Celtic’s August 2018 failure to sign John McGinn from Hibs are still very common in football circles.
The Scotland international, a lifelong supporter of the Hoops, was certain to be on his way to Parkhead until he was quickly transported to Aston Villa on the other side of the border.
Everyone was taken aback by the player’s sudden and drastic shift in course for their future, and since then, various fantastical interpretations of the events have surfaced.
In his homage to the club’s first 51 unblemished titles in their illustrious history, “50 Flags Plus One,” Celtic book author Alex Gordon set the record straight.
Here’s an excerpt from the chapter in the 2020 edition in another CQN EXCLUSIVE.
John McGinn, the grandson of former Celtic chairman Jack, appeared to be a lock to join the winners. The customary bargaining over a fee had taken place between the clubs that were buying and selling.
There appeared to be no actual interest from other parties, making it an open field for Celtic to acquire their man.
Aston Villa’s manager at the time, Steve Bruce, raised some noises, but there was a huge catch: the English second-tier team had financial difficulties. They had needed additional funding in order to satisfy a £4 million claim from HMRC.
It appeared as though the formality of a £2.5 million trade between the Scottish teams would be finalized as the transfer deadline drew near.
Less than two weeks remained until the summer transfer window closed, and the Midlands club was significantly invested in by NSWE, an Egyptian corporation run by two billionaires. After Bruce made a £2.75 million bid, McGinn was certain that Aston Villa was where his future belonged almost immediately.
Rather than transfer him to a Scottish rival, Hibs were only too happy to accept the money from the English team.
For Celtic, the unexpected and unanticipated cash infusion had come at a highly unfavorable time. Brendan Rodgers was obviously not at all happy. After speaking with McGinn directly, he realized that there was one crucial component missing from the puzzle—a signed contract that was done in three copies.
According to trustworthy sources, McGinn would have earned £25,000 a week over the course of a four-year contract at Celtic. That was the same amount that the English team was offering, along with the guarantee of a huge bonus should they get promoted to the Premier League.
The player had been carried southward at a breakneck speed. Bruce, who was adamant, promised to center his midfield on the aggressive Glaswegian. Rodgers had not made such a hasty and stupid commitment.
Rodgers addressed the Press at Lennoxtown one week prior to the second leg of the Champions League third round qualifier against AEK Athens in Greece, which followed an unimpressive 1-1 draw in Glasgow.
When asked if giving up on his quest for progress would mean his time at Celtics was over, Rodgers gave a startlingly direct response: “Yeah. That means I’ve finished my work. Completed. Vanished. But that presents a problem. You must put yourself through the wringer. As a club, you have to have guts. I enjoy coming to work here.
“I love my life here and I enjoy being the manager here. But it’s no good if I just sit back and get comfortable. Being comfortable is the enemy of progress.”
He added: “I totally respect how difficult it can be, the financial side is tough at times. I have a huge respect for the board here – absolutely. They have run the club strategically very, very well. Me coming into here and what I have seen in the past couple of years, I have real good relations with every one of them.
“There is not an issue there at all. My focus is on doing the best for Celtic. Deep down, I am a supporter, but I am also a professional manager. I also look for the help that is needed to take the team to the next level if that is what the demand is. I will always push for that.”
I found the manager’s delivery more than candid and somewhat disturbing. In between “I couldn’t be happier” and “terminado”, something had gone more than slightly awry.
The mood in the camp wasn’t heightened when the challenge for the group stages of Europe’s elite competition disintegrated following another apathetic performance in the Greek capital, losing 2-1 to an average team who went on to lose all six of their Champions League group games.
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