Hibs hero reveals brutal Aston Villa dressing down from Unai Emery as boss tells star he could be binned

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The Premier League star spent three years on the books at Hibs

Aston Villa ace John McGinn, who joined the Champions League side from Hibs back in 2018, has been told he needs to ‘improve’ by Unai Emery when he is back.

He is currently sidelined due to injury. The midfielder has been a key player for the Premier League outfit over recent times. He has made 242 appearances for them in all competitions to date, six of which have come this season, and he has scored 26 goals.

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Speaking ahead of Aston Villa’s clash against Manchester United over the weekend with the Viaplay Sports team, the former Hibs man said: “He’s (Emery) so intense. He called me in and said ‘you were very poor against Wolves’ and I need to improve when I’m back or I’ll be out. I thought he was having a nice chat with me!”

Emery’s side are balancing domestic football with their European adventure. McGinn has recently suggested the fixture list is getting quite congested: “I do think that the fixture schedule is getting out of hand. We are extremely lucky to be paid very well to do a job we love but on the mental side, you need that time to switch off.

“I think I’ve experienced both sides of the coin. When we were mid-table, not playing as many games and not having much to play for at the end of the season, we were desperate to play more games and be more successful.

"Even when we first got into Europe, I just wanted the games to keep coming! It does really start to take its toll though, and you need to be able to switch off from the game both mentally and physically more often, it needs looking at."

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He added: “The expectation in the dressing room is that we finish in the top eight and go all the way. We know what we are capable of and that we belong at this level. I think there was more expectation and pressure on us to get far in the Europa Conference League last season.

"We embraced that we were the favourites to go and win that tournament and we couldn’t deliver on that. That experience has only made us stronger to go further this year. Playing Bayern Munich and Juventus at Villa Park will be special, I cannot wait for that atmosphere. I'm glad we've been able to deliver that to our supporters."

McGinn has come a long way since his spell at Hibs from 2015 to 2018. He moved to Edinburgh after catching the eye as a youngster at St Mirren.

The Scotland international went on to play 136 games during his time at Easter Road and found the net on 18 occasions. He helped his ex-team get promoted from the Scottish Championship in his second year.

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Hibs lost 2-1 at home to Motherwell over the weekend meaning they head into the international break on the back of a loss. They are back in action in a couple of weeks with an away trip to Dundee United.

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