Miller might now regret 'best player' claim - McGinn

Lennon Miller and John McGinn trained together for the first time on Monday

Nations League play-off, first leg: Greece v Scotland

Venue: Karaiskakis Stadium, Piraeus Date: Thursday, 20 March Time: 19:45 GMT

Coverage: Watch on BBC One Scotland & iPlayer; listen on BBC Radio Scotland & Sounds; live text coverage & in-play clips on the BBC Sport website & app

John McGinn believes Lennon Miller might regret saying he could soon become Scotland's best player but has backed the teenager to come through a nerve-racking squad debut with flying colours - just as he did nine years ago.

The Motherwell midfielder has been called up for the Nations League play-off double header against Greece.

"I'm obviously not going to go in and be the best player there, but I believe I could maybe in a couple of months be the best player there," the 18-year-old said when he found out he was in the squad.

Scotland assistant coach John Carver said the comment showed Miller needed "a little bit of guidance".

"He's probably thinking - why did I say that? But I said plenty of stupid things when I was coming through at St Mirren," said McGinn, 30.

The Aston Villa captain recalled that his own first call-up came while he was 21 and playing in Scotland's second tier with Hibernian - and his elevation to the squad earned criticism from a seasoned international.

"I remember Charlie Adam did an interview on my first day from Stoke's training ground asking why there were Scottish Championship players getting called up, which wasn't too helpful at the time," McGinn recalled.

"I don't think he was aiming it at me individually or personally. Just the timing of it was a bit of a disaster as I was already a bit nervous and star struck.

"So, at my first lunch at Mar Hall, all the experienced boys were getting right on me, like, 'you shouldn't be in the squad'.

"My session 30 minutes later wasn't great. It was nerve wracking. Shaun Maloney made me feel that small, turning me inside out and I remember going back to my room and thinking to myself, 'I can't compete at this level, they are too good'.

"But, as the sessions go on, as you get more experience, you get more comfortable and you start to express yourself more."

McGinn recalled that Adam was not the only one who thought a player from the second tier should not be playing for Scotland.

"I will always be grateful to Gordon Strachan for giving me that opportunity and he flung me right in for my debut that week," he said.

"There was a lot of pressure on me and I felt it a little bit, but I remember that first game next to Broony [Scott Brown]. Little nuggets of wisdom during the game, support before the game, and you start to feel at home."

McGinn played the full 90 minutes of that 1-0 friendly victory over Denmark, was named man of the match and has gone on to earn 73 caps.

Now he is looking forward to playing alongside a "confident" player he has watched develop in action alongside his brother Paul at Fir Park, as well as another 18-year-old squad debutant - Heart of Midlothian striker James Wilson.

"They are not here to make the numbers up," McGinn added.

"They are here to take our places if they, eventually, are better than the ones who are here. He definitely has the ability to do so and so does James."