If Martin O'Neill picks his Euro 2016 squad based on form, Aiden McGeady will not be there.
On February 1st, he made the move to Sheffield Wednesday on loan after it became clear his chances of reestablishing himself in the Everton first team were minimal.
This season, he started just one game for his parent club. That was a League Cup win against Barnsley in late August. Even his chances to be on the Everton bench were negligible. Only twice between that game against Barnsley and his move to Sheffield Wednesday did he make Roberto Martinez's matchday squad.
When he moved to Wednesday, it appeared an ideal match. McGeady required football if he was going to make Martin O'Neill's squad. Wednesday were in the hunt for promotion and the quality which the winger had shown in the past could have been their ticket.
It just hasn't happened for him in Yorkshire.
The 30-year-old has made 13 appearances for Wednesday, ten of those starts. His contribution in those games: one goal and zero assists.
A regular watcher of the Championship club, Chris Holt of the Sheffield Star, can't see why Martin O'Neill would include McGeady in his 23-man squad.
When he arrived at Wednesday, it seemed like a good fit for everybody. He wanted to get fit and give himself a chance to get into the squad for the Euros but it's just taken him too long to get up to speed with where he needed to be.
He had to take a punt, he had to move somewhere or otherwise he wasn't going to get the opportunity [to play games].
There has been nothing that I have seen to suggest that he would be one of the players I would take to the Euros.
Sheffield Wednesday have progressed to the final of the Championship playoffs - that has not been due to McGeady's contributions. He was left out of Carlos Carvalhal's squads for both legs of the playoff semi-final against Brighton.
He's been left out.
If I'm honest, he hasn't been as good as people thought or expected him to be. Obviously, in fairness to him, it took a bit of time to get his match fitness. It probably took too long at a pivotal time of the season for Sheffield Wednesday.
He's basically had one good game against Forest away - he scored in that game. He played well that day but good performances have been few and far between. The fact that he hasn't played much football until he arrived at Wednesday has had a big impact on him.
Six days prior to the first leg of the playoff semi-final, Wednesday played a second choice team against Wolves. McGready was included. It was then that it became apparent he would play no part in the playoffs.
That was a game where we realised he wasn't going to play in the two games against Brighton because they put out a weakened side of fringe players to give the first team an extra week off. That was a fringe team that played against Wolves.
It didn't do anything to changes minds about whether or not he was going to be playing. You could tell at that stage that the team had been picked - anybody who played against Wolves wasn't going to get into the squad for the two Brighton games, it was pretty clear.
On May 28th, Martin O'Neill names his 23 who will travel to France. That's the same day Sheffield Wednesday play at Wembley in the playoff final against Hull. Holt believes it would take a 'rash of injuries' for McGeady to play a part in that game.
His lack of form for Wednesday has neither been down to lack of effort or opportunity, both have been there in abundance. Mainly, it's due to that five months he spent atrophying at Goodison Park.
It hasn't been for the want of trying. He hasn't been wandering around not looking like he doesn't care or anything. He's given his all but he's just looked a bit off the pace and lacking a bit of sharpness that was needed for Wednesday in a very important stage of the campaign.
It's just taken him too long to get up to the level that he's shown in the past that he's capable of.
Despite all the evidence regarding McGeady's lack of form, it's highly likely he'll be among the 23 named by O'Neill in ten days time. O'Neill has shown remarkable faith in him previously and it's hard to see it not continuing this summer.
Picture credit: Paul Mohan / SPORTSFILE
