Aston Villa's John McGinn is hoping to play happy families

The midfielder is back fully recovered from a fractured ankle and ready to play his part in the final 10 matches of a top flight campaign which is edging toward a mid-June restart.

Like everyone else McGinn has been unable to see members of his family during the coronavirus lockdown and is yet to meet his nine-week-old-niece Hannah in person.

But while the 25-year-old’s main focus remains on health, his attentions are also turning to the task of helping Villa retain the Premier League status he played such a big part in winning 12 months ago.

Dean Smith’s team sat 19th in the table, two points from safety with a game in hand when the season was suspended on March 13.

McGinn said: “It’s been a tough one – not health-wise – but my brother Stephen had a baby girl nine weeks ago. So it’s tough for everyone.

“It’s strange. Seeing a newborn on Facetime is not the same as holding her, so in that respect it’s hard.

“But it’s also hard for my mum and dad who are desperate to go and give her a cuddle, but we’re not allowed.

“A lot of the lads are in the same boat, we're all missing our families and all keen to see them when we can.

“But we've got a job to do too. I'm sure everybody in the country wants the football back as soon as it's safe to do so.

“We won't want to go back to seeing our families if we're in the wrong division, so we're all keen to do this not only for the club and the supporters, but also for ourselves.

“We don't want this period to become a period that we'll have to remember for the wrong reasons not only in virus terms, but also in football terms.”

McGinn, who fractured his left ankle early in a 3-1 defeat to Southampton in December, was on the brink of making his return to action when the campaign was halted.

But while the Scotland international’s time out has been longer than he or anyone else can have envisioned, he maintains a sense of perspective.

“I actually trained on the Friday before the Chelsea game and the gaffer shouted across to say it had been called off,” he explained. “It was disappointing but you can’t complain too much.

“I got injured two days after the team Christmas visits to the Acorns Hospice and the Children’s Hospital, which I won't ever forget.

“It brings you right back down to earth and you realise the things these families are going through. How tough it is for them.

“Then there is me, sulking over a broken bone, knowing they would swap places in a heartbeat.

“On top of that two weeks later I was watching on a flight when Tom Heaton and Wesley went down with such serious injuries. There was no way I could have complained after that.”

He continued: “The shutdown upset my rhythm a little bit, the same way it's upset a lot of people, but we've just got to try and adapt as best we can.

“It was important in the last couple of weeks that I didn't try to rush back too quickly, I've had to ease myself back and remember it's a long time that I was out for.

“It's coming up to six months since my last game, so I'm choking to get out there.”

Yesterday marked the one-year anniversary of Villa’s play-off final win over Derby County.

McGinn, who got the winning goal at Wembley, joked he has only rewatched the final “about the 20 times” but believes the manner in which promotion was won can inspire Smith’s men now.

Villa looked destined for another spell in the Championship as late as March before winning 10 matches in a row to barge their way into the play-offs.

McGinn said: “We’ve got to use that experience. We’re not naive enough to think we can go and win 10-in-a-row in the Premier League but if we can get that sort of confidence and belief then we can get Villa out of this situation.

“Unfortunately we’re just inside the relegation zone at the minute but we’re more than capable of getting out of it and it’s in our own hands.”

Villa had lost five straight in all competitions when the season was suspended and McGinn believes the unprecedented break could work in their favour.

Players have held regular chats over Zoom while Smith held individual reviews with every member of his first-team squad.

McGinn explained: “We've been working on weaknesses individually that you don't always get the chance to do. “In football the pressure is obviously on results and when games are coming thick and fast you focus on the team.

“But during this period when we've had to do individual work, it's been on yourself.

“So that's a positive in a way but we've got to implement it now. We all know we've not had a great season really in the league but we still have the opportunity to finish strongly and make sure that, no matter what, we keep Villa in the league.”