John McGinn is relishing Aston Villa’s trip to Paris in the Champions League next month
John McGinn thought the closest he’d get to playing Paris Saint-Germain was when he bought a shirt in the club shop as a boy.
Some 22 years after his first visit to the French capital, he’ll captain Aston Villa in the Champions League quarter-finals as Unai Emery’s side continue their European voyage.
Villa beat Club Brugge 6-1 on aggregate to progress to the last eight, winning 3-1 in Belgium last week before completing the job at Villa Park on Wednesday night.
“It’s surreal,” McGinn admitted after full-time. “You don’t get the time to reflect when you’re playing, but me and Ty had a laugh about it. We were part of a roller-coaster season in which we ended up getting promoted.
“I think as players, the staff members that have been here a long time and the supporters who were with us through thick and thin, Millwall away getting hammered, Wigan away getting hammered.
“Now they’ve got a trip to Paris to look forward to in the last eight of the Champions League. It’s amazing. But we need to take stock, go there and compete and it’s one we’re really looking forward to.
“For us, we’ve got to work. But I’m sure all the supporters, whether they get the ferry, get in their cars, there’ll be plenty of Aston Villa fans over there.
“We all deserve it. But why not dare to dream? We can carry this journey on. You never, never know. Stranger things have happened.
“We know we’re capable of playing against the best, competing against the best and I’m sure every team that comes up against us will know they’re in for a game.”
PSG defeated Liverpool on penalties at Anfield on Tuesday night having won 1-0 on Merseyside to level the tie up.
The French champions have won 14 of their 19 home matches in all competitions this season, losing only to Atletico Madrid and Liverpool in the Champions League.
“I think no matter who we’ve got, whether it’s PSG or Liverpool, we’re going into the game as underdogs,” McGinn admitted.
“It’s quite difficult to watch because you know that football can come and bite you in the backside. Tonight it showed in the first half, we still had a lot of work to do to get through the tie.
“What I did see was two world-class teams, explosive, full of pace, strength, power. But what we’ve shown over the years, especially here at Villa Park, is that we can compete against the best in the world, whether that’s Man City in full flow, or Liverpool in full flow.
“I think PSG have got a lot in their armoury which can hurt us, but what we have is a lot in ours that can hurt them.
“It’s going to be a tighter game than a lot of people realise and we’ll certainly give everything we have to get through.
The midfielder added: “It’s a nice tie. The only place I’ve been there is the shop. I think I was about seven or eight. We went to France on holiday. We were in a big campervan I remember.
“Stopped off at Paris on the way to Disneyland. I think we went to a camping site somewhere with all my family.
“I remember getting a PSG strip. That was as close as I thought I would ever get to playing against them. So it’s strange!
“I think, for us, it’s a case of leaving absolutely everything out there. We’ll be underdogs, but what we’ve got is some massive games both in the cup and in the league before then. Focus switches to that game and getting everyone back to full fitness.”