Hibs: Aiden McGeady on Lee Johnson 'mind games', coming back to Scottish football, and Sunderland experience

Twelve years that took him to Russia with Spartak Moscow, then the English Premier League with Everton and loan spells in the Championship with Preston North End and Sheffield Wednesday, before a permanent move to Sunderland where he started off well, was exiled to the under-23s by Phil Parkinson, and brought back to the Black Cats starting XI by the same man who brought him back to Scotland when he signed a one-year deal with Hibs last week.

Wednesday’s pre-season friendly against Hartlepool United was the first time McGeady has featured in a match since November last year, a medial ligament injury reducing him to just 16 appearances in all competitions.

"I had a few setbacks at Sunderland,” he explains, as he speaks at Hibs’ summer training camp in the Algarve.

"I was fit for probably the last two or three weeks of the season but not anywhere near the fitness I needed to be at and I never played so it was good getting back into it.

"I've only trained two or three days and then had the game – it's pre-season, but you want to get as much out of it as you can."

The injury is fully healed – "medial injuries are a funny one with footballers because you pass the ball a lot; if it was another ligament you might not use it as much but I feel good now” – and the wideman admits to feeling flattered that there was interest in him as the end of his Sunderland contract drew nearer.

"I was quite... not surprised, but I felt I was in quite a privileged position that I had interest at my age, especially considering that there are so many other players out of contract across England and Scotland,” he adds.

"I had a few teams after me so that was great, a big compliment. There's that doubt at the back of your head, that you might have