John McGinn continues to blossom into one of the Premier League’s finest midfielders with an ‘absolutely brilliant’ goal in Aston Villa’s 3-1 victory over Fulham on Sunday.
Aston Villa’s midfield meatball has always been a pretty good player. But, under Unai Emery, he’s threatening to turn into a pretty great one.
You’d be hard pressed to find a man playing in his position who is in better form right now, John McGinn doing what very few others have done over the last 12 months as he waltzed past the usually un-waltz-past-able Joao Palhinha before rattling a typically fierce finish into the Fulham net.
That was McGinn’s fifth goal in just 19 games this season. A tally made all the more impressive when you consider that the affable Scot only hit the target once throughout the entirety of 2022/23.
John McGinn shines as Aston Villa beat Fulham
“He’s been brilliant, he really has, along with the three alongside him,” former Aston Villa favourite Lee Hendrie tells Sky Sports.
“What a finish (for his goal). A brilliant first touch. Wow. It’s absolutely brilliant. The space opens up and he’s only got on thing on his mind. Absolutely no chance for (Fulham goalkeeper Bernd) Leno. Pace, power and tucked right into that far corner.”
McGinn has been given more licence to break into the penalty area under Emery, freed up by the presence of Youri Tielemans, Douglas Luiz and Boubacar Kamara behind him in the Spaniard’s so-called ‘box midfield’.
In fact, you could argue that John McGinn is thinking outside the box these days, quite literally.
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“He’s got the license to get forward. He gets on the ball, he’s got that tenacious attitude. (Scoring goals) is one thing I thought he had to add to his game,” Hendrie adds. “And he’s certainly doing that now.
“With that box in midfield, it really suits (McGinn’s strengths).”
Aston Villa’s 13th successive home Premier League win means the Midland giants are now just one place and one point behind early pacesetters Tottenham Hotspur in fourth.
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