O’Dea names McGeady as the best Celtic player he played with

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Darren O’Dea played for Celtic for almost six years after leaving in August 2012.

Former Celtic academy graduate Darren O’Dea has told Celtic Quick News that Aiden McGeady was the best Hoops player he ever played alongside at Parkhead.

The 30-year-old defender goes up against Celtic’s Old Firm rivals Rangers on Friday night, as he becomes somewhat of a journeyman after joining the ninth different club of his career in Dundee last summer.

O’Dea, who wore the number 48 shirt during his time with the Hoops, spent almost six years at Lennoxtown after his first-team debut in November 2006 before eventually leaving to join MLS side Toronto in 2012.

The commanding centre-back reminisced in an interview with CQN, recalling fleet-footed former Celtic ace McGeady as the best Celtic player he came up against.

“Aiden McGeady,” O’Dea said, when asked who was the best Celtic player he played alongside. “His feet were so quick and as he grew older he got quicker. Impossible to stop in a one v one. He could go both ways.

“Playing left back behind him it was just a case of giving him the ball and I loved the fact that when he maybe lost the ball a couple of times and the crowd might be anxious he would never hide.

“He would keep taking it and was brave to try things. Tommy [Burns] was a huge part of his mental strength too. He’d always say to him, it only takes one moment to win a game.”

McGeady, 31, is now with Championship side Sunderland after leaving the club in 2010 to join Russia giants Spartak Moscow, before spells with Everton, Sheffield Wednesday, Preston and then the Wearside outfit.

The pocket-sized dynamo made a huge 193 appearances for Celtic in all competitions, scoring 30 goals and adding another 49 strikes in assists for the Scottish giants. He won three Scottish Premiership medals during his time at Parkhead.