As Scotland prepares to take on Greece in a double-header, Celtic fans will get the chance to watch one of their heroes in action.
The two-week international break is a part of the football calendar that many Celtic supporters simply do not enjoy.
And who can blame them? With Brendan Rodgers on the brink of another treble, the Parkhead support can’t wait to see more silverware being added to the Celtic Park trophy cabinet.
However, as John McGinn leads the build-up to Scotland’s kick-off in Greece tonight, the Aston Villa captain shares how his first-ever national training camp was ruined by a former Celtic player who destroyed him in training.
Photo by AMA/Corbis via Getty Images
Photo by AMA/Corbis via Getty Images
Aston Villa captain John McGinn says Celtic’s Shaun Maloney destroyed him at Scotland training camp
McGinn told the pre-match press conference via PLZ Soccer, “I remember Charlie Adam did an interview on the 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.
“So my first lunch at Mar Hall, I remember 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, but it was just it was nerve-wracking. Shaun Maloney made me feel about that small when he was turning me inside out.
“And I remember going back to my room and you have a wee think to yourself saying, ‘I can’t compete at this level. They were too good’.
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“But as the sessions go on, as you get more experience, you get more comfortable, and you start to express yourself a bit more.”
The year Shaun Maloney helped Celtic destroy Rangers’ season
During his two spells at Celtic, Maloney faced Rangers a total of 13 times. Of those fixtures, the talented winger won five, drew two and lost six.
Maloney also scored two and created two in big wins for Celtic over the Glasgow rivals. So with that in mind, here are three games where the Celtic winger/striker helped destroy Rangers.
19.11.2005: Celtic 3 v 0 Rangers. Maloney created an assist for John Hartson’s opener as Gordon Strachan’s Celtic battered the Ibrox club.
9.11.2005: Celtic 2 v 0 Rangers. Maloney scores Celtic’s opener in the League Cup quarter final to book another Hampden date for the Hoops.
In this season, Celtic went on to win the league and cup double as Rangers finished the season trophyless once again.