Niall McGinn was born in Dungannon, Northern Ireland, on 20 July 1987 (age 39). A right winger by trade, he first came through at Derry City before Celtic paid around £200,000 to bring him to Glasgow in January 2009.
His Celtic spell had flashes rather than permanence. An early hat-trick hinted at the sharpness that would mark much of his career, but he was still short of being fully settled in the senior side. In July 2012 he left Celtic for Aberdeen, a move that gave his career its proper shape.
Aberdeen became the club most closely associated with McGinn. Across 10 seasons he made 279 league appearances and scored 71 league goals, generally operating from the right but carrying a steady scoring threat. His best league campaign came immediately after leaving Celtic, with 20 goals in 35 appearances in 2012-13.
There were other stops along the way – Gwangju FC, Dundee, Glentoran and Peterhead among them – but they sit around the Aberdeen years rather than competing with them. McGinn’s career is best understood as a promising Celtic signing whose most substantial work was done elsewhere, above all at Pittodrie.
📈 Key stats and insights
