Interesting stuff this on McGeadys reflection of his time at Everton. Personally i am left with a sense that he seems to blame everything and everyone for his short comings, managers, fitness, not being given a chance when really his failings seem to be his own will to succeed. Its an interesting insight into Everton during that time and the players own mentality:
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By his own admission Aiden McGeady didn't do much at
Everton.
But the former Blues winger has some forthright opinions about why his move to Merseyside didn't work out, and he's not afraid to air them.
McGeady, 31, joined Sunderland earlier this summer, following their new manager Simon Grayson to Wearside after a successful loan spell under him at Preston North End last term.
His period at Everton was not quite as positive, following a 2014 move to Goodison from Spartak Moscow.
On joining Everton...
"Roberto Martinez always wanted to sign me - even from when I was at Celtic and he was at Swansea and Wigan. I nearly signed for Wigan from Spartak the window before but couldn't come to an agreement with them because I kind of thought there was a good chance they'd get relegated and they did.
"And I wanted a guarantee that if they got relegated I could leave on a free - but he said that was impossible.
"We couldn't do it so I decided to stay at Spartak. My contract was running out and Spartak offered me a new one, and then one day my manager pulled me in after a game, he was smoking like a chimney. Everyone smokes over there, all the players.
He wouldn't look at me. He said 'Look at that and sign it' and it said I would be transferred to the u-16s. There were only two weeks before the winter break and from then I just trained with the youngsters.
"Spartak said after the break if you come back you'll be with the young players. I had to move. I had eight weeks off and was living life to the max but the Everton thing came up and I ended up signing for them. I looked like a bowling ball. Martinez didn't say anything but I remember seeing pictures of myself and I was a bit heavier.
"Everton didn't have to pay much for me, I was almost a free, and Spartak were buzzing to get rid of me because my contract was running out so they got some money. I thought, 'Everton are a really good club and I know Martinez likes me', or I thought he liked me.
On not being played by Martinez...
"From that point on to the end of the season Martinez kept saying 'This six months is just to get you acclimatised to the Premier League' and I was kind of OK with it. I only started two games but I'd be coming off the bench. But that summer I went away and came back in really good nick, flying.
"I had a really good pre-season and then scored in the first game against Leicester and then the next game I was on the bench.
"That was the story of Everton for me. I just couldn't get going. I had the odd good game, I had the odd bad game when I was starting but I could never get a run of games.
"I was kind of always on the bench. I used to go in and see him and ask what was going on. I would rather he had just told me, 'I'm not having you'. But he would say 'Aiden you can be this, you can be that'. You'd go in thinking 'I will go in and say this' and he would absolutely Jedi mind-trick you. I'd come out and think, 'I didn't say the things I wanted to say'.
"He'd come and say 'How are you Aiden? How's things?"
"I just couldn't get going. It's a big club but I just couldn't get going. You're trying to impress but I only started three games in a row once.
"We played Swansea at home; we drew 0-0 and I played quite well but still got taken off. Then we played Lille at home in the Europa League and I set up two goals and still got taken off. On the Sunday we played Sunderland away and I played OK and got taken off. After that I didn't really play until Christmas.
On the Premier League...
"The Premier League has changed. It's not like Europe where you play against a Barcelona and think 'We'll struggle here'. When I was at Everton we beat Arsenal at home, we beat Manchester United at home. Man City.
"Anyone can beat anyone. It's more athletic than anywhere else I've played. You come up against a full back and even if he's not good on the ball he'll be an absolute Jaguar; rapid, strong and quick. The quality on the ball the top teams have is high. They can bop it around. Everton could.
"It's the most exciting league and probably the best."
On being loaned out...
"I hadn't been playing at all and had the chance to go to Sunderland at the start of that season. I didn't want to sit on the bench again. Everton wanted quite a lot of money for me to go on loan though which made it difficult.
"I was injured all pre-season and then the last game I played for Everton was against Barnsley in the cup. I started and we were getting beaten 2-0 at half time. I wasn't playing well but nobody was really. Martinez had a go at me, at Naismith, Lukaku and Mirallas.
"He said the front four have been nothing short of a disgrace but then he took me off and left them on. They all scored in the second half and we won 5-2. I thought 'I've no chance now' and the next game I was completely left out of the squad for the first time in my career and after that I never got a look in.
"He would encourage me when I saw him but I said to him 'I need to be playing because I've got the Euros. I can't be not playing or I'll lose my place in the Ireland team'.
"But he'd said: "Aiden the last few weeks in training you've been unbelievable" and I'd say: "That's good am I going to get a chance?" and he'd say: "Keep doing it, keep doing it".
"He'd just repeat it next time. Then when the loan to Sheff Wed came up I thought it was a sleeping giant, they play good football and the manager was all over me.
I went to see Martinez the day I was leaving. He said: "We've agreed with Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn - it's up to you" and I said to him: "I just don't know how it's got to this".
He said: "Well you've let other players get ahead of you." I said: "Gaffer the last game I played was six months ago."
He said: "At Sheff Wed you can play No 10, right or left." I said: "You told me I could only play on the right for Everton!" And he said: "Yeah for us but for them you can play right, left and centre."
So I ended up leaving. It didn't quite work out at Sheffield Wednesday though. I was lacking match fitness and didn't have that much time to get up to speed...at one point I was on the verge of quitting football. I had lost the love of it and wasn't enjoying it anymore."
"Last season was one of the best I've had though. Playing every week. The manager was brilliant for me.
"The dressing room was great. Going from Everton were there were a lot of foreigners and a few big egos in there as well to Preston where the lads were totally down to earth."
