McGinn: Celtic match isn't 'Mission Impossible'

Nov 18 2008 by Paul Behan, Paisley Daily Express

ST MIRREN midfield ace Stephen McGinn insists this weekend’s clash against SPL champions Celtic is NOT ‘Mission Impossible’ for his Buddies.

The Hoops are four points clear at the top of the league after racking up 10 SPL wins in a row.

And the bookies are giving the Buddies little chance of ending that run when Gordon Strachan’s men come to Love Street on Saturday.

But McGinn believes St Mirren’s 1-0 win over Old Firm giants Rangers last month is proof that they are capable of causing a major upset.

The talented teenager – who scored the only goal in that sensational victory at Love Street – said: “We have to believe we can beat Celtic because it’s the only way to play against the Old Firm.

“This will be the match of the weekend, so we’ll be looking forward to it.”

The showdown with the Hoops will be St Mirren’s second date with the Old Firm in the space of seven days following on from the 2-1 defeat against Rangers at Ibrox last Saturday.

The fixtures have left Buddies boss Gus MacPherson seeking an explanation from SPL top brass as to why his side has been handed such tough back-to-back matches in such a short space of time.

But McGinn, 19, says he is relishing the prospect of tackling the league leaders.

He said: “The way the fixtures have worked out, a few teams have got Celtic and Rangers back to back and, while it’s not ideal, we’ll be making the most of it.

“To be honest, we love being involved in these games. They’re massive and all the focus is on you when you play either of the Old Firm.”

McGinn, although disappointed with the final outcome at Ibrox on Saturday, believes Saints will take positives from the way they played in spells and use it to their advantage as they prepare for this weekend’s match.

He said: “I felt we created good chances and that’s not easy to do, especially against a team like Rangers.

“They’re a hard team to break down but the way we pushed on towards the end will give us confidence going into this game on Saturday.”

McGinn is St Mirren’s Old Firm talisman as he has scored twice against Celtic in previous league encounters at Parkhead and is still hailed as a hero following that winner against Rangers last month.

But the modest midfielder insists he’ll be quite happy for one of his Buddies to hog the limelight this weekend.

He said: “When you score against the Old Firm, you do get a fair bit of attention because it’s high profile and I know what that feels like but I don’t get caught up in it.

“We want goals to come from different areas of the team.

“The most important thing is not the goalscorer – the important thing is that we do score and get something from the game.”