Unai Emery hails John McGinn as the perfect role model, as the Scottish midfielder prepares to return to old club Hibernian for the first time since leaving to join Aston Villa for £2.5m

Unai Emery says John McGinn is the ultimate role model for young footballers and that Aston Villa got a huge bargain when he signed the Scottish midfielder from Hibernian in 2018 for just £2.5 million.

McGinn returns to Edinburgh on Wednesday for Villa’s first Europa Conference League assignment at Hibs, where he made 136 appearances and made a name for himself between 2015 and 2018. And veteran Spaniard Emery praised the Glaswegian.

A straight-faced Emery chuckled when asked if McGinn would cost a little more money to sign now, saying, “Since the move, his career has gotten better and better. Now I think it would cost more than before (laughs).

“It’s good because John is always positive in the dressing room, always cheerful, always demanding, always involved with his teammates, with the club and with the coaches. His work is always of a high standard. I am happy for him.

“He deserves it because he always tries to do his best. He pushed to minute 85, 90 minutes (during the victory over Everton on Sunday). He played the same move in the first and 90th minutes. John is an example for others, for his teammates, for the supporters.’

McGinn has become a key player at Villa since joining Hibernian for £2.5 million in 2018

Emery has a large team of analysts who spent hours looking at Hibs footage, but says McGinn and coach Austin MacPhee, former assistant to Ian Cathro at rival Hearts, helped improve preparation ahead of the trip to Easter Road.

“Of course we let our coaches analyze Hibernian and they told me a little bit about how they play last week,” Emery said. “And then we could use something they can tell us, Austin and John. We have to be demanding and respectful towards them.’

Emery, who has won European competitions four times at Sevilla and Villarreal, plus a Ligue Un title at Paris Saint-Germain, admits he is excited to bring glory days back to Villa Park after 13 years without European football.

“We also have our experiences, the players and me as a coach,” he added. “Playing in Europe has always been very rewarding to me as a coach, in football I am so grateful for the opportunity to play in Europe.

‘Every day I go to the training ground I see the 1982 European Championship. It’s good to remember. This is the history of Aston Villa and it’s amazing. We now want to write a new history and hopefully we can enjoy here and feel something important.’