Aston Villa's John McGinn hopes his stunner will spark a goal rush
Villa Stamford Bridge goal hero John McGinn felt he let former boss Steven Gerrard down in an ‘extremely difficult’ start to the season.
The Scot’s first club goal since November 2021 wrapped up a fine 2-0 win at Chelsea as Villa’s impressive form under Unai Emery continued – in a result that spelled the end for Graham Potter as boss at Stamford Bridge.
The goal capped a memorable week for McGinn, 28, who netted for Scotland the previous weekend before a starring role in his nation’s notable victory over Spain.
But the midfielder admitted to some dark days earlier this term before Gerrard’s sacking, as a personal slump saw McGinn left out of the side. The former Hibs man confessed his performances were not up to scratch and some hard yards were required to wrestle back a place in the reckoning under Spaniard Emery.
“The goal has been a long time coming,” McGinn said after his stunner from distance at Stamford Bridge. “I was just fortunate the shot didn’t get blocked. It was just an amazing feeling it went in. After the Scotland win, it’s been an amazing week.
“The start of the season was for me was extremely difficult. The manager, Steven Gerrard, was first class with me, he had a lot of trust in me but I didn’t really repay that. My performances were below par.
“I spent some time on the bench and put my head down and worked hard. I got my chance to come back in and hopefully I can keep doing that and keep my form up.”
Goals from in-form Ollie Watkins and McGinn helped Villa up to ninth in the Premier League, where a stunning run of form under Emery has left fans dreaming of a possible late European push.
McGinn saluted the visitors’ commitment to the cause. He said: “Ollie (Watkins) is on fire at the moment, so it was a great goal to get us going.
“Everyone was flinging their bodies on the line. This league’s difficult so to go on a run like we’ve done, and to stay so humble, to a man we were first class.”
On a first Villa goal in 48 attempts, McGinn said: “I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve tried to lace it and it’s been blocked. So this time I side-footed and it went in. I’m delighted and hopefully it will start a run.”
Former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann has been installed as the early favourite to take over at Chelsea after Potter’s sacking. Bruno Saltor will take charge as interim head coach, with Chelsea set to host Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night before travelling to Wolves next weekend.
