Nocturnal 
John McGinn is closing in on 100 Scotland caps and sits fifth in the nation’s all-time scoring charts, but even his biggest admirers admit the Aston Villa midfielder has gone quiet in front of goal for his country.
Writing for the BBC from Skopje ahead of Scotland’s clash with North Macedonia, journalist Tom English says McGinn “could do with finding his best stuff again” after a lean spell in a dark blue shirt.
It comes in a landmark weekend for the Scotland squad, with Andy Robertson set to win his 100th cap. McGinn isn’t far behind him. After Saturday night’s match he will move onto 92 caps, putting him third on the all-time appearance list, while he remains one goal shy of equalling the legendary Lawrie Reilly’s tally in fifth spot in the scoring charts.
A quiet spell by his own high standards
For all the milestones, English argues McGinn’s influence on the pitch for Scotland has dipped from the heights fans became used to. The energy, graft and passion are still very much there, but the match-winning moments have dried up.
A goal against Haiti was highlighted as one rare bright spot, but beyond that the piece suggests McGinn “has been too quiet for too long” in terms of decisive contributions. According to the report, it has been coming up for two years since his previous Scotland goal before that strike.
McGinn, who turns 32 later this month, was candid when asked about the scrutiny that comes with being one of the team’s senior figures. “The nature of the beast is, at club and country, you have a lot of responsibility, a lot of weight on your shoulders,” he said.
He added that the swings in public perception are simply part of the job. “When you do something well, you’re the best thing since sliced bread. When you don’t have a great couple of games, or you’re not producing assists, or you make a poor pass in a pivotal moment of the game, you’re automatically not good enough,” McGinn said, pointing out it’s “the nature of being my age” and of competing at both Villa and international level.
Not feeling untouchable despite his caps tally
Given his experience and status as a near-cult hero among Scotland supporters, McGinn was asked if he now felt undroppable from Steve Clarke’s side. He was quick to shut that down.
“No, no. I’m certainly not undroppable,” he said, recalling a time he was left out by Clarke without complaint.
English’s piece suggests that while McGinn remains a key leader for Scotland both on and off the pitch, supporters and pundits alike are waiting for a reminder of the match-defining quality that made him so cherished in the first place.
Where things stand now
Scotland faced North Macedonia in Skopje this weekend, with McGinn in line to win his 92nd cap and Robertson set to reach his century. Whether McGinn can rediscover his best form on the pitch remains to be seen, but for now his importance to the squad as a figurehead and talisman is not in question, even if his end product has slowed.
