Newcastle United boss Steve Bruce has admitted that he almost lost out on signing John McGinn to Celtic when he was Aston Villa manager.
McGinn has been one of the most influential players at Aston Villa since he joined the club from Hibernian during the summer of 2018.
The midfielder played a crucial role in guiding Aston Villa back to the Premier League and the Scotland international has continued to impress in the top tier of English football.
Bruce, who is currently in charge of Newcastle United, admits that would love to sign a few players of McGinn’s ilk at St. James’ Park as well and is delighted with his success at Aston Villa.
Celtic were keen to snap up McGinn and keep him in Scotland, and Bruce has admitted that Aston Villa nearly did not sign the player and ended up just managing to snatch him from under the Bhoys' noses.
Bruce said in a press conference when asked about McGinn: “I wish I could find a few more of him.
“We nearly didn’t sign him because we couldn’t afford £2m, but we whipped him away from Celtic just at the right time.
“I always knew he’d be very good, but he’s surpassed expectations.”
Bruce will take his Newcastle team to his former stomping ground Villa Park on Monday night to take on the Villans under lights.
