Gary recently spoke to RedMatchday Magazine:

As we saw with Greg Stewart in our last issue, there’s more than one route to the top in football, but if you need further proof, you can find it in the frame of Gary Mackay-Steven.

Injury when he was a youngster hampered his progress after a youthful career that took in spells at Liverpool and Fulham after it had begun at Ross County, but over the last few seasons he has established himself as one of the most exciting attacking talents back on this side of the border.

“I got the chance to go to Liverpool when I was 15. It was quite surreal seeing how big the club was and the facilities they had. I don’t regret anything. I’d do it again if I was back there, it was an amazing experience. It was a good group that I was with and a lot of the boys are still playing although not at Liverpool – Martin Kelly at Crystal Palace for example.

“I learned a lot when I was down there. Unfortunately injuries curtailed some of my progress but joining a club like Liverpool after they had just won the Champions League and then two seasons later, they were runners-up in the same competition. I would watch the first team as they trained beside you, they were all Champions League winners, so you can’t help but learn off players like that.

“I moved to Liverpool when I was 15. Not many people move away from home at such a young age and it was a long way from home in Thurso, so that does make you grow up quicker. I also learnt very early on how quickly football can change. You can get injuries and things you can’t control which can change your course.”

Having lost that time to injury, Gary was ultimately released by Liverpool and moved on to a spell in London with Fulham. “That was another big club and another great experience. It was a really family run club, they were very welcoming and I enjoyed my time there. It was great to part of but it seems a long time ago now!”

“I had been struggling with a stress fracture to my hip, quite an unusual injury. It needed a few opinions and ultimately the doctor came to the conclusion I should have a sustained period of rest, so I returned to Thurso. It was a case of going back, being around my family and taking a little bit of time to reflect and not do any form of exercise. I was working at my local bar and enjoyed it. I was just waiting to feel physically good in myself again. Once I did, I knew I’d work towards my dream again.

“I’d train myself down my local park, just me and a ball, and I felt ready again. It’s funny, I still do that to this day if I have a day off – go to the park with a ball and practice. But I don’t think I’ll ever stop that. I’ll always have a ball at my feet no matter what. I’ve grown comfortable with the ball and enjoy time with it. I’ve always had that passion”.

After returning to Scotland, Gary resumed his career January 2011, playing with Airdrie United to the end of the season when he was snapped up by Dundee United. That was where he really established himself playing over 100 games and scoring plenty of goals which led to him signing for Celtic in January 2015.

“I’m still quite young, but I have done a lot. Every career is different. You can’t really map out how things will go. In football you need a lot of luck because injuries can happen and turn things around. You can be way up high one minute and feel like you are on top of the world and then all of a sudden, you can feel very low.

“That is maybe part of the reason I’m laid back. I think it is so important not to get too carried away when things are great and not get too low when you are injured or things are going against you. If you are chilled and laid back about everything, then it makes it easier to deal with whatever comes your way. I think the same applies to everything I do, off the field as well.

“I don’t think there has ever been a time where I thought I couldn’t make it to the top. Going from Liverpool and Fulham to dropping down levels and taking a period out of the game, that really opens your eyes. I appreciate what I have a lot more now.

“One thing I have also learnt along the way how important it is to enjoy your football. You have to try and enjoy every moment. Things can change for better or for worse, so when you are fit and healthy, you have to enjoy every day. Enjoy every training session. Every day you can play is a blessing.

“The injury at Fulham was out of my hands, it could have happened to anyone, but it gave me an experience and a taste of something which helped make me become hungrier to get back to where I feel I can be.

“I never felt hard done by or thought, “Why me?” I put that down to my family keeping me quite well grounded and never letting me get ahead of myself at any point. Now, I feel mentally strong, having gone through what I’ve gone through. I’ m here now, I’m still young, fit and healthy and feel very grateful. The big thing is that I never lost my self belief. I always felt I could play at a really high level and I want to show that ability here at Aberdeen.

“I am loving life here. I really feel at home now and I am starting to see more of the city. I have got a flat now, so I feel settled. I’m really enjoying it, enjoying training. There is a great bunch of lads at this club who are fun to be around too.

“Just how good the players and the fans are was brought home a couple of months ago when I had that little swimming incident! One minute you are having a good time and the next minute you are floating down the river. Luckily I am still here to tell the tale. It was pure silliness from my part. But I am now able to put it behind me and move on.

“As well as the manager and all the staff, and the boys in the dressing room who have been great with me from day one, the supporters have been brilliant. I knew the fans here were tremendous before I was at the club. I know it even more now. I really appreciate the support they gave me personally during that episode. Now I want to repay everyone for that faith.

“For me personally on the park, with my situation over the past year where I have not played a lot, you do need a few games to really get your rhythm, but I feel my fitness is now where I want it to be. That is definitely a plus. I had a good pre-season at Celtic and had quite a lot of games and got plenty of minutes, so I didn’t feel too bad at all when I arrived here and I am now getting in a rhythm. Training all week, I now have a matchday to look forward to and that is so beneficial. It is such an important thing for a player.

“I have had a few minor injuries this season but they are now behind me. I wanted to prove to the manager what I could do and repay his faith in signing me straight away. I feel now that I am starting to do that.

“I think the general feeling in the dressing room is that we are doing ok but we can do better. That is all we are focused on. We have made a good start and have accumulated a decent amount of points, but we can get better and want to show what we are really about.

“We have gone through phases in games when it has looked like we are in complete control but for whatever reason, we have let teams back in. The Celtic game aside, the other games in the league when we have dropped points, they are games we probably should have won, which is frustrating for everyone concerned.

“Hamilton was an example of that. It felt like a defeat in the dressing room. We are all really disappointed that we did not come away with the three points which we had in our hands.

“You have to say Hamilton played well and deserved to take something from the game. I don’t think people give them enough credit for their style of football. They are aggressive, they win second balls and they do it very well. It is a tough place to go.

“Going 1-0 down, I thought our reaction was good. We came out and played some decent stuff in the second half and got ahead, but we really should be closing out the game. Maybe later we will look back at it as an ok point but at the time it was disappointing we did not come away with the three.

“We will come back strong. After that result you want a game a lot sooner. You want to get back into some kind of rhythm, but we used the break to our advantage and got some rest. We recharged the batteries for what is now going to be a very busy period.

“Over the next two months we have some big, big games. As a player those are the games that you want to be involved in. There is pressure to win every game at this club. The more pressure the better really. It is something you want as a player. To have those expectations on you all the time, it brings out the best in you. You are constantly under pressure to perform. We are expected to win almost every game. Players thrive on that.

“The manager made some great signings in the summer, on top of the boys who were already here. We have a lot of competition for places in every position and the squad is looking strong. We have got a bit of strength in depth in the forward areas and we have a lot of very good creative players, guys who can win you games.

“Different players have different characteristics. Some like to dribble, some like to look for a through ball, so it is a case of getting used to different players’ attributes. Gelling is quite a vague term but that comes with training day in, day out with the boys and on matchdays too.

“We have been working hard on the training ground and the new players are finding their feet. It is a very good dressing room to come into. Everyone gets on with each other. As I say we are doing ok at the moment but I feel there is more to come from us.

“The run of games has been a bit stop start with all the international breaks but we are now ready for when the games coming thick and fast. The boys have done well in the league and we are off to a good start. We are ready for the rest of the season ahead and it is very exciting. These are exciting times for Aberdeen and with the stadium project, if that goes ahead, it’s more exciting still.

“I knew about the training situation before I got here, it’s a lot different from other clubs I’ve been at. It is what it is, you adapt. It is different is the sense that we get changed at the stadium and then travel to a training ground. Before, I would just walk out onto a pitch.

“At the moment the weather is good so the pitches we are training on are in good condition. So once we are actually training, it’s not such a problem. But there are little things that make a difference. As soon as you are done training, speaking from a personal point of view, I like to get my food on board. Here, sometimes you are waiting for a minibus to fill up before going back for your lunch. Or if you want to get a rub straight away you need to wait. Or if you want to go back out in the afternoon to practice other things, you can’t do that. But as I say, we are professional, we train, we do our work. I might have a different answer in the winter time though!”