Super John McGinn Appreciation Thread

[Lyle Lanley]

That is all. 

[ArabFC]

Wasn't really on top form either - just used his arse when needed to most and finished brilliantly.

[Arch Stanton]

He's been using his arse since day one.

 

[Lex]

I think he has a very good chance of getting 100+ caps and ending up as the highest Scotland goal scorer of all time. He's currently on 49 caps and 14 goals. Our top scorers are Dalglish and Law, who are tied on 30. For a bit of modern context our top two scorers so far this century are McFadden who ended with 48 caps and 15 goals and Miller with 69 caps and 18 goals. 

He's been playing for Scotland for six years and at 27 he's certainly got at least another six years in him. If he stays fit and keeps up his current ratio he will do it. Remarkable really, considering he's never been a consistent goal scorer at any club he was at. His highest club return for a season is seven, in the Championship with Villa. He has three goals in each of his three full seasons in the EPL. He puts on that Scotland strip and all of a sudden he's a goal threat, superb. 

[Gordopolis]

I think he has a very good chance of getting 100+ caps and ending up as the highest Scotland goal scorer of all time. He's currently on 49 caps and 14 goals. Our top scorers are Dalglish and Law, who are tied on 30. For a bit of modern context our top two scorers so far this century are McFadden who ended with 48 caps and 15 goals and Miller with 69 caps and 18 goals. 
He's been playing for Scotland for six years and at 27 he's certainly got at least another six years in him. If he stays fit and keeps up his current ratio he will do it. Remarkable really, considering he's never been a consistent goal scorer at any club he was at. His highest club return for a season is seven, in the Championship with Villa. He has three goals in each of his three full seasons in the EPL. He puts on that Scotland strip and all of a sudden he's a goal threat, superb. 

Totally agree with all you say...
...but I remember almost exactly the same things being said about McFadden when he was 27 too. He then just dropped off a cliff with an injury at Birmingham shortly after that shocking Liechtenstein game in 2010, and never played or scored for us again.

Hopefully that kind of lightning won't strike McGinn though, and he romps on to even greater legendary, arse-based brilliance.

[craigkillie]

I'd be surprised if he scored another 16 goals for Scotland, but getting to 20 would be a reasonable target. I think a lot of his game is quite physical so wouldn't be surprised to see him drop off once he's in his early 30s.

[Gordopolis]

1 hour ago, craigkillie said:

I'd be surprised if he scored another 16 goals for Scotland, but getting to 20 would be a reasonable target. I think a lot of his game is quite physical so wouldn't be surprised to see him drop off once he's in his early 30s.

I agree on one hand, but then the fact all his goals so far have come from in the last 3 years makes me think it's not as unrealistic as it first seems.
He just seems to click as our goalscoring midfielder - something we haven't had really, probably since John Collins?

[The Algebraist]

The most beautiful arse ever to play the beautiful game.  

[Smokerson]

To be playing at his currently level at 33 would be very surprising, think he will get about 70 odd caps and around 25 goals

[DAFC.]

Beating the record would be extraordinary. Can't see it happening though. Players like him tend to drop off when they hit 30 onwards. 

We just don't have these strikers other countries seem to produce that can put the Law/Dalgleish record under serious threat. 

[Donathan]

A current Scotland player might well beat the record but McGinn isn’t the one I have in mind. Big Daddy Dykes already has 8 in 23, is 26 years old, is on penalties and penalty box poachers of his style can easily play well into their mid to late thirties 

[HuttonDressedAsLahm]

McGinn could do both.  We're playing 9/10 games per year, so he could be on 100 caps by 31/32.

He needs 3/4 goals a season which is challenging, but something he's already been averaging.  A few more fixtures against San Marino or Gibraltar might be all that's needed.  

After all, when Harry Kane or Ronaldo's goalscoring record is to be reviewed, they do score against everyone, but a significant number come from running over the minnows.

We've only had 10 players hit 50 caps this Century, but it's well within the realms of possibility that 10 players or more hit that from this squad.

edit: obviously 50, not 100

Edited September 22, 2022 by HuttonDressedAsLahm

[craigkillie]

I would have McTominay down as the most likely to make 100. He has 35 caps already at the age of 25 and barely misses a game.

[Lex]

A current Scotland player might well beat the record but McGinn isn’t the one I have in mind. Big Daddy Dykes already has 8 in 23, is 26 years old, is on penalties and penalty box poachers of his style can easily play well into their mid to late thirties 

The big difference is that Dykes doesn’t start in our first choice 11, of course.
Handy option to have from the bench though.

[Gordopolis]

The big difference is that Dykes doesn’t start in our first choice 11, of course.
Handy option to have from the bench though.

Probably not Vs tougher nations, but quite likely Vs minnows against whom (as mentioned by a poster earlier) there is a good chance of racking up a few goals.

Just for fun, I predict Dykes will reach something like 58 caps, 20 goals, which would be pretty excellent really - eclipsing the likes of McCoist and Miller.

[Donathan]

1 minute ago, Gordopolis said:

Probably not Vs tougher nations, but quite likely Vs minnows against whom (as mentioned by a poster earlier) there is a good chance of racking up a few goals.

Just for fun, I predict Dykes will reach something like 58 caps, 20 goals, which would be pretty excellent really - eclipsing the likes of McCoist and Miller.

Dykes also scored two goals in a cameo appearance not 48 hours ago. The majority of goals are scored towards the end of football matches. If we end up with a standard strategy of Che Adams starting for an hour and Dykes coming off the bench for 30 mins, there’s no reason he can’t break the record doing that.

 

He’s a quarter of the way to breaking the record through 2 years and there’s nothing about his record, age or game profile that make me think four goals a year for six more years is unsustainable. 

[accies1874]

When Dykes and McGinn aren't playing well, they look like they'll never score again so I wouldn't be confident making any predictions about their final tally.

[Donathan]

1 minute ago, accies1874 said:

When Dykes and McGinn aren't playing well, they look like they'll never score again so I wouldn't be confident making any predictions about their final tally.

McGinn was anonymous for the first hour on Wednesday night and Dykes has been so poor for QPR this season that he’s been dropped to the bench for the last two matches so I’m not sure that holds up in practice. Both of them have shown the ability to pop up with unexpected goals. 

[accies1874]

2 hours ago, Donathan said:

McGinn was anonymous for the first hour on Wednesday night and Dykes has been so poor for QPR this season that he’s been dropped to the bench for the last two matches so I’m not sure that holds up in practice. Both of them have shown the ability to pop up with unexpected goals. 

Dykes went a year or something without a goal for Scotland while McGinn went eight games and then seven. He missed a million chances in June which I think was due to confidence.

[Gordopolis]

5 hours ago, Donathan said:

Dykes also scored two goals in a cameo appearance not 48 hours ago. The majority of goals are scored towards the end of football matches. If we end up with a standard strategy of Che Adams starting for an hour and Dykes coming off the bench for 30 mins, there’s no reason he can’t break the record doing that.
 
He’s a quarter of the way to breaking the record through 2 years and there’s nothing about his record, age or game profile that make me think four goals a year for six more years is unsustainable. 

Don't disagree with any of that tbh.
It's just the tendency for Scotland strikers to have very patchy scoring form that makes me pessimistic. It's far more likely that he won't break the record than that he will, but that doesn't make it impossible.

The main thing the 2 goals the other night have done is sweep away the narrative that seemed to be building that we had moved past the need for Dykes up front.

Edit: saw this in Tom English's column today - quite apt to the Dykes chat:
"Dykes has now got eight goals in 23 games for Scotland. To put it into context, that's more than Steve Archibald (four in 27), Charlie Nicholas (five in 20), Andy Gray (seven in 20) and Gordon Durie (seven in 43) managed. He's one shy of Kevin Gallacher, who won 53 caps and is just three short of Joe Jordan, who played 52 times for his country."

Edited September 23, 2022 by Gordopolis