John McGinn revealed he was “petrified” of missing the World Cup with Scotland after suffering a knee injury in January.

The midfielder was forced off in the first half of Aston Villa’s defeat to Everton, though he avoided any long-term problems as he made his return to action earlier this month in the Europa League.

The Villa captain scored in back-to-back games against Lille and West Ham before the international break, where he started for Scotland in their 1-0 defeat to Japan.

Scotland face Ivory Coast on Tuesday as they prepare to end their 28-year wait to play at the World Cup finals this summer.

Steve Clarke’s side will take on Brazil, Morocco and Haiti in one of the more difficult groups at the tournament hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

MD-1 at @BarclaysHampden #CIVSCO pic.twitter.com/mgvd1pJXdH

— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) March 30, 2026

Ahead of Scotland’s friendly against Ivory Coast at Hill Dickinson Stadium, McGinn revealed his initial emotions after his knee injury in January.

“I was scared,” McGinn told BBC Scotland. “I remember right away feeling, oh this isn’t right.

“It was 10, 15 minutes into the game, I blocked a pass against Everton and I knew right away, so my hand goes up and obviously I’ve known experienced players who have done serious knee injuries six months plus feeling able to walk off.

“I was petrified really, but then you get the scan and you wait and thankfully it was good news that it was only a minor knee injury.

“The knee obviously reacts in different ways to surgery, but it could have been a lot, lot worse. It was expected to be six to eight weeks. Managed to come back in six weeks.”