Celtic favourite Aiden McGeady believes his own journey in football could help shape the next generation at the club, as the former Everton and Sunderland winger sets his sights on a return to the place where he first made his mark.
The ex Republic of Ireland international spent ten years at Parkhead during his playing days, establishing himself as one of the club’s standout talents before sealing a big money move to Spartak Moscow in 2010, which at the time made him Celtic’s most expensive outgoing transfer.
Following spells with Everton, Sunderland, Hibernian and Ayr United, he called time on his playing career two years ago and stepped into a Technical Manager role with Ayr. He has since moved into a scouting position at Wigan Athletic, continuing his work behind the scenes.
From early on, McGeady was in the spotlight. His explosive pace and skill on the ball quickly made him a crowd favourite and one of the most exciting players to watch.
While he enjoyed plenty of success at Celtic Park, winning four league titles and picking up the Player of the Year award in 2008, his time at the club was not without its challenges. His difficult relationship with then manager Gordon Strachan at times affected his spell in Glasgow.
Having experienced the highs and lows of life at Celtic, McGeady feels he is well placed to guide young players coming through the ranks.
McGeady on Celtic academy ambitions
Speaking to the Daily Record, the 40 year old said he would “love” to return to the club, with a particular focus on working with young wingers and forwards in the academy.
At present, James Forrest remains the only attacking homegrown player in the first team setup. When asked about the possibility of taking on a role within the academy, the former Celtic, Everton and Sunderland man said: “You’d have to ask the powers that be if there would be a role or not…
“But yeah, I’d love to. You’re talking about wingers there, there’s things I think I could help players on, and little things in a game to coach them. Especially wingers and forwards. Everything I could do could apply to the whole Academy. It is something that I think is needed in football. Why would you not want to give players that you are paying a lot of money for or your Academy players every bit of help that they can get?”
Ex Hoops winger can draw on experiences to help next generation:
The former attacker believes his background gives him a strong platform to support younger players, having come through the system himself.
He continued: “Let’s be honest, everybody wants Academy players and young players in their first team, like when I was younger. I’d love to do something like that, whether or not that happens remains to be seen.
“It is something that I’d like to do because I feel that I’ve got too much experience and knowledge to keep it to myself and not pass it on. I’d love to be able to help. If that was first team or B team or younger Academy I’d love to be able to help them. Not to make the mistakes that I made, help them round their game in any way possible.”