John McGinn admits he is ‘living the dream’ with Aston Villa
Villa captain John McGinn insists it was an “easy decision” to sign a new long-term contract at Villa Park.
The midfielder has penned a new four-year deal which will extend his stay at the club until 2027.
McGinn said: “It was an easy one. The manager told me a few weeks ago, in fact probably a couple of months ago, that he was really happy with me and that he wanted me to extend my stay.
“I’m delighted to get it sorted. This is home for me now so another four years and I’m just really excited to be involved in what should be an exciting journey now.
“I’m living the dream. If you’d told me when I was young that I’d be playing in the Premier League against the best players in the world for a club like Aston Villa then I’d pinch myself.”
The Scotland international joined Villa from Hibernian in 2018 and scored the decisive second goal in the 2019 Championship play-off final victory over Derby County at Wembley.
Since securing Villa’s return to the Premier League, McGinn has remained a key player and was rewarded with the captaincy at the start of last season.
He made 36 appearances across all competitions during the 2022-23 season and helped guide Villa to European qualification under Unai Emery for the first time since 2010.
Only continental treble winners Manchester City (48), along with Manchester United (44) and Arsenal (41) registered more points than Villa in the Premier League in 2023.
Villa finished the campaign in seventh-place to book their place in next season’s UEFA Conference League, and McGinn is looking forward to what the future holds with Emery at the helm.
“There’s been plenty of ups and downs but I’ve loved every minute. We’ve been pretty successful,” McGinn said.
“The first season couldn’t have went any better. We managed to get promoted and then we found the Premier League challenging.
“We’ve had some great moments and I think this season epitomised what everyone wants to achieve. It shows the potential and ambition that everyone has and we’re starting to fulfil that.
“With the manager and staff in place at the moment I’m sure it’s really exciting for the fans, and it’s exciting to be a player here because they’re just improving everybody and I feel that improvement.”
