John McGinn scored Scotland's first men's World Cup goal in 28 years, then celebrated with his upside-down goggles gesture in a 1-0 win over Haiti. The goal gave Scotland a rare tournament breakthrough and put them within reach of a first knockout game ever.
John McGinn and Jack
The 31-year-old said the celebration was for his nephew Jack, who needs goggles to play football because of his poor eyesight. McGinn said, "It's probably as strong a lens as you can get for a child. When he takes his glasses off, you can see how much he struggles."
He added that the gesture was meant to reach more than one family. "But it's not just the reaction from him, and allowing him to be more comfortable playing football with his pals. It's the awareness for young kids all around Scotland, all around the world."
World Cup and Haiti
The finish itself was untidy. McGinn said of the goal, "I scuffed it a wee bit." But the touch still carried the sort of weight Scotland had been waiting 28 years for, and it arrived in a 1-0 result that changed the mood around the team immediately.
That strike also sat inside a longer pattern of scoring scarcity. Not since Stuart McCall and Mo Johnston in 1990 had a Scot scored in a World Cup win, with Tom Boyd's final touch for Brazil's decider in 1998 cited as an exception involving a Scot. Saturday's goal closed that gap and gave Scotland something tangible to build on before Friday night against Morocco.
Scotland and Aston Villa
McGinn's summer has already stretched across club and country. He captained Aston Villa to a top-four finish, scored against Liverpool to secure Champions League qualification, scored twice against Nottingham Forest in the Europa League semi-final win, and lifted Aston Villa's first European trophy for 44 years after the final victory over Freiburg.
He is one of the two captains central to Steve Clarke's side with Andy Robertson, and the goal over Haiti added another entry to a summer that has already produced three historic feats for McGinn. The next step is straightforward: turn one landmark goal into progress beyond the group stage.
