Ofir Marciano was convinced John McGinn had what it took to cut it in the English top flight from the pair’s first Hibernian training session - but even he was surprised to see the midfielder’s stunning bicycle kick against Austria.
The Israeli stopper is set for the latest meeting with his adopted home country at international level on Sunday when the Tartan Army travel to Tel-Aviv in World Cup qualifying action.
The Hibs keeper gained a measure of revenge over his former teammate following the penalty that squirmed under his body in the Euro 2020 play-off semi-final penalty shootout last year by producing a match winning display in the 1-0 defeat of Steve Clarke’s side in November.
Marciano will wave goodbye to Easter Road after five years at the club when his deal expires at the end of the season having played alongside Aston Villa star McGinn for two of those.
But the 31-year-old admitted it took far less time to recognise the midfielder was bound for the top of the game, even with the men in green and white fighting to return to the Scottish Premiership.
“It's really unusual for him to score a goal like that, usually he is more a long shot player," Marciano told Sky Sports when asked about his Austria leveller.
“I remember since day one, the first training I was so impressed. I remember telling my agent ‘we have such an amazing player’ because I saw his quality.
“The time we spent together, I saw how he improved. He was getting better and better. I always saw John as a Premier League player with the tempo of his game.
“That was just the style and the level he was playing at, even at Hibs."
Sunday will mark the fourth time the two national sides have met in the past six months but for Marciano, the pain of Israel’s Hampden defeat on penalties remains, with McGinn’s spot kick a particular sore spot.
Sunday will mark the fourth time the two national sides have met in the past six months, but for Marciano, the pain of Israel’s Hampden defeat on penalties remains, with McGinn’s spot kick a particular sore spot.
Scotland snuck through to face Serbia in Belgrade, where David Marshall was the hero between the sticks as the Tartan Army ended their international tournament hiatus.
Marciano could come up against a current teammate in Kevin Nisbet should the Hibs forward be handed a debut for the national side.
But the stopper gave him the same warning he directed towards McGinn, stating this time he will be ready.
“Sometimes there are moments in your career that you want to go back to them, so you can affect them better but there’s nothing I can do about it now,” he said.
“Hopefully if I face another challenge like that in the future, I will be more effective.”
