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“My reaction to Aiden’s performance? I think he can play a lot better but maybe that’s the story of Aiden’s career.”

Those were the words of former Celtic midfielder and then Republic of Ireland assistant manager Roy Keane in May 2016.

Aiden McGeady was a precocious footballing talent, that's for certain. He burst onto the scene as an 18-year-old under Martin O'Neill in 2004 and scored on his debut in a 1-1 draw at Tynecastle.

It was he who shattered the popular myth that O'Neill was not one to play youth during his managerial tenure at Parkhead. He was, however, to prove a somewhat divisive figure before leaving in 2010.

With McGeady still playing top-tier football at the advent of his 37th birthday, The Celtic Way has decided to delve into the winger's Hoops legacy...

The overriding feeling back in 2004 was that a star was born. McGeady would spend the next six full seasons in the Celtic team, scored 36 goals and provided 80 assists while winning three more titles, two Scottish Cups and a League Cup before moving to Spartak Moscow for a then-record fee of £9million in 2010. He has represented the Republic of Ireland 93 times and scored five goals for his country over a 13-year international career.

McGeady was something of a prodigy - and sublimely talented. He was an entertainer born to play football. He twisted and turned and bamboozled defenders at home and abroad and it all seemed to come naturally to him.

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He could also frustrate the life out of the Celtic supporters with his ability to skin a man-marker and then fail to provide a decent end product.

So a precocious talent is one thing, being labelled a one-trick pony is quite another. McGeady appeared to have as many supporters as detractors in his Hoops career.

However, after taking a couple of campaigns to bed in and adjusting to being a Celtic first-team player at an early age, McGeady flourished under the tutelage of Gordon Strachan despite the emergence of Shaun Maloney at the same time.

Celtic qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League twice under Strachan in 2006-07 and 2007-08. McGeady played a significant part in those successes.

More often than not his ball retention in Europe belied his young years as he played like a 30-year-old veteran on the biggest club stage. He proved that he could occupy players at the highest level and belonged in that company.

In season 2007-08 McGeady had his annus mirabilis when he waltzed off with both the SPFA player and young player of the year awards as he followed in the footsteps of Hoops team-mate Sean Maloney who achieved the same feat in 2006.

McGeady was one of the fulcrums of the team that clinched the league title for the third year in a row that season, overhauling Rangers in the process with one week left of the campaign and winning at Tannadice on a thrilling final night of the season to clinch the trophy.

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On a particular day in February 2008, McGeady treated the watching football world to his trademark spin move as he did a back-heel turn with a 360-degree swivel at Pittodrie to leave Aberdeen defenders in his wake before contributing a ridiculous assist for Scott McDonald in a 5-1 win. It was a player at the peak of his powers as he entered his 24th year.

It was Dutch master and legend Johan Cryuff who gave rise to the signature 'Cruyff turn'. McGeady should have patented his 'McGeady swivel'. The winger's piece of artistry and skill was unsurpassed; nobody could perform the move or execute it as well as the Celtic man.

Throughout his career, his irresistible club form was completely at odds with the shameful treatment he received from supporters at every ground up and down the country after he had declared his international allegiance to the Republic of Ireland owing to having an Irish grandfather.

The verbal abuse rained down from the stands and he was often the subject of press talk as to why he had chosen to represent the green of Ireland instead of the dark blue of Scotland.

There were also some temperament issues as well - documented on-field arguments with Neil Lennon and off-field fights with then Hoops manager Gordon Strachan, as well as a training ground incident with Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc, will testify to that. He was a spiky character.

There is a tendency to over-romanticise when certain players' time has come and gone. They can take on some misty-eyed mystical reference perhaps above their actual abilities as a footballer.

McGeady, though, could be an anomaly of a player. He was capable of moments of incredible and individual brilliance that took the breath away but, like most wide players, he was also plagued with bouts of inconsistency.

However, it is worth remembering that McGeady had to bear a hell of a lot of weight on his shoulders from a very early age. He was made to evolve at a rate that is not usually reserved for other youth players who break into the Celtic first team.

He held the burden and expectations of the supporters because he was touted as the next big thing. He carried the can and was made an easy scapegoat for some when it all went wrong.

Ultimately, McGeady's rise was genuinely meteoric. His tale falls into the rags-to-riches kind.

He was the pin-up boy of Celtic who possessed an abundance of quality and ability. Quite simply, on his day, he was a baller. History will be kind to McGeady. And it deserves to be.

He will always be remembered as a fine Celtic player but you can argue the toss as to whether he will ever be lauded in the same way that club greats and natural talents like Jimmy Johnstone, Henrik Larsson, Danny McGrain, Paul McStay and Lubomir Moravcik are.

Roy Keane's initial comment can at best be construed as unkind and at worst cruel. Like it or not, it is also a microcosm of McGeady's career and Celtic legacy.

This piece is an extract from the latest Celtic Digest newsletter, which is emailed out every weekday evening with a round-up of the day's top stories and exclusive analysis from The Celtic Way team.

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