Aston Villa skipper John McGinn has reflected on his journey from being a Scottish Championship player to becoming a Champions League quarter-finalist, as he prepares for Scotland duty.
The 30 year old first joined the squad nine years ago and faced criticism for his early involvement with the national team, given his then status as a player in Scotland's second tier with Hibernian.
McGinn made his debut against Denmark in March 2016, during a two-year stint with Hibernian.
His selection was not universally welcomed, with former Scotland international Charlie Adam – who was playing in the Premier League with Stoke City at the time – questioning why less-established midfielders were being chosen over him by then manager Gordon Strachan.
Adam, whose last cap came in 2015, was quoted saying: "Scotland see fit to go with players playing in the Championship in Scotland over players who are playing in the Premier League."
The comment was seen by some as a direct jab at McGinn.
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However, as he gears up for Thursday's Nations League play-off first leg against Greece in Piraeus, McGinn reflected on the incident: "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," he told PA Sport.
"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."
Now a key figure for both Villa and Scotland, McGinn, who is set to face Paris Saint-Germain in the last eight next month, takes "a lot of pride" in having silenced his critics over time.
"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," he said.
"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."
Adam spent seven years at the bet365 Stadium, where he made 179 appearances and spent six seasons in the Premier League. He retired in 2022 with 26 international caps to his name.
How do you recall Adam's time at Stoke City? Have your say here