Real name	Paul McStay
Height	5.10
Nickname	Maestro
Weight	10.07
Date of birth	22-10-1964
Place of birth	Hamilton
Position	Midfielder
Nationality	Scotland
Scotland Caps	76

Paul Michael Lyons McStay MBE was born on October 22 1964 in Hamilton, Lanarkshire.

A hotly tipped youth prospect Paul was a member of Celtic Boys Club who burst onto the football scene in remarkable style when he hit two goals and was man of the match as Scotland schoolboys defeated their English counterparts at Wembley in front of a live TV audience in June 1980.

He signed for Celtic aged seventeen and made his senior Celtic debut in a 4-0 home Scottish Cup win over Queen of the South on January 21st 1982. Part of a great Celtic dynasty - his Great Uncle's Jimmy and Wille were both Hoops greats while brothers Willie and Raymond also played for the club - Paul seemed almost destined to write his name into Celtic folklore.

Despite his tender years McStay had a talent so significant he was simply too good to sit on the bench or learn his trade with the reserves. A key man under Billy McNeill and then Davie Hay, the precocious youngster soon earned international recognition with Scotland and by the end of season 1985-86 – at the age of 21 - he had collected two league titles plus a Scottish Cup and a League Cup winners medals.

A trophyless campaign followed but during the course of Celtic’s wonderful Centenary season of 1987-88 McStay was at his magnificent best. Throughout the course of a truly memorable season the man affectionately christened ‘The Maestro’ by the Bhoys support was a class apart from anyone else in Scotland.

At his best McStay was a peerless performer in Scotland and among the very finest midfielders in Europe. He had it all – wonderful touch and footwork, composed and elegant in possession and with the vision and ability to dissect any defence with a single pass. He would pick the ball up and glide effortlessly pass opponents before delivering an inch perfect killer pass.

A fine performance in the 1989 Scottish Cup final against Rangers saw McStay add another winners medal to his list but it would be some time before anymore silverware came his way. By the early 1990s McStay had the burden of captaining one of the worst Celtic sides in history. Years of under-investment on the playing squad saw the Hoops struggle badly to compete with big-spending Rangers. McStay's talent remained undoubted but many of those who played beside him simply didn't deserve that privilege.

It seemed inevitable that the Bhoys would lose their one true class act and at the end of season 1991-92 McStay would throw his shirt into the Jungle in a gesture which all but signaled the end of his time at Parkhead. He was easily the stand-out performer for Scotland at Euro 92 and Inter Milan were rumoured to be keen to take him to Italy.

However McStay performed a dramatic U-turn and to the surprise and delight of the support he remained at Celtic Park. However, Celtic continued to struggle and it was only natural that Paul himself would suffer a loss of form. In November 1994 he missed a penalty as Celtic blew a golden chance to claim their first major trophy since 1989 as Raith won the League Cup thanks to a shock spot-kick shootout victory.

Such heartbreak was a cruel injustice for a player who had given everything he could to the Celtic cause so it was with extra glee that the support finally witnessed McStay lift a major trophy when the Bhoys defeated Airdrie in the 1995 Scottish Cup final and end their trophy drought.

Paul was a revived character under Tommy Burns but an ankle injury forced his surprise retirement at the end of the 1996-1997 season. It says everything about his immense talent and commitment to the Celtic cause that despite the second half of his career being at a time when the Bhoys were overshadowed by rivals Rangers, in 2002 he was voted one of Celtic's greatest ever team by the club's fans.

Unquestionably one of the greatest ever Celts.


Pictures

• Picture Gallery

Banners & Tributes

• Paul McStay Banner

Video

• The Maestro (Celtic Underground)

Song

• Paul McStay Song

Career

Club	From	To	Fee	League		FA Cup		League cup		Other
Celtic	20-02-1981	31-05-1997	Youth	511 (2)	57	7 (0)	0	1 (0)	0	3 (0)	0
		Totals	£ 0	511 (2)	57	7 (0)	0	1 (0)	0	3 (0)	0
			goals / game	0.11		0		0		0
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals

Career
1981-1982 Played 10 Scored 1 goal (Scottish Premier)
1982-1983 Played 36 Scored 6 goals (Scottish Premier)
1983-1984 Played 34 Scored 3 goals (Scottish Premier)
1984-1985 Played 32 Scored 4 goals (Scottish Premier)
1985-1986 Played 34 Scored 8 goals (Scottish Premier)
1986-1987 Played 43 Scored 3 goals (Scottish Premier)
1987-1988 Played 44 Scored 5 goals (Scottish Premier)
1988-1989 Played 33 Scored 5 goals (Scottish Premier)
1989-1990 Played 35 Scored 3 goals (Scottish Premier)
1990-1991 Played 30 Scored 2 goals (Scottish Premier)
1991-1992 Played 31 Scored 7 goals (Scottish Premier)
1992-1993 Played 43 Scored 4 goals (Scottish Premier)
1993-1994 Played 35 Scored 2 goals (Scottish Premier)
1994-1995 Played 29 Scored 1 goal (Scottish Premier)
1995-1996 Played 30 Scored 2 goals (Scottish Premier)
1996-1997 Played 15 Scored 1 goal (Scottish Premier)

Quotes
'The game was ninety minutes longs but for me the game lasted as long as my five years as captian and six years without a trophy'
Paul McStay speaking after beating Airdrie in the 1995 Scottish Cup Final

I remember Paul McStay saying to Krankl, in very clear English, ' You're a cheat'. The bottle had landed 20 yards away from their player.'
Peter Grant, 2003, on the Rapid Vienna fiasco. Krankl was Vienna's captain.