John McGinn has opened up on his previous clashes with Celtic boss Neil Lennon.
Lennon returned to Celtic in February of last year after being sacked by Hibernian a month earlier.
During his stint at Easter Road, the Northern Irish manager had McGinn in his squad and the Aston Villa midfielder – now worth £50 million [The Sun] – has claimed that the now-Hoops boss questioned his ability.
Speaking to BBC Sportsound, the Scottish midfielder said: “It was funny, the first few months, we did clash a little bit.
“He was saying ‘somebody told me you are a good player but I just don’t see it’. I would have a wee bite back but there was instant respect from me for what he has done.
“He was very different but I learned a lot from him because he was just a winner.”
Lennon is a very talented man-manager and one who commands a lot of respect from his Celtic players.
So although it looks like he was questioning McGinn as a player, it could have been said with a view toward motivating the Scotland international to show him what he can do.
The Parkhead club missed out on McGinn some seven or eight months before Lennon returned to Glasgow, when Brendan Rodgers was still in charge.
The Scottish giants had three bids rejected by Hibs and he wound up joining the Villans for £3.5 million in what is now considered a massive bargain.
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