JAMES MCCLEAN HAS been the subject of more online abuse after the Republic of Ireland international appeared to turn his back during a rendition of ‘God Save The Queen’ on Saturday.
The 26-year-old winger was appearing for his new club, West Brom, during their pre-season tour of America when he allegedly turned away from the Union Jack flag when the teams were lining-up for the anthems.
Charleston Battery, the Premier League club’s opponents, posted highlights of the game on their YouTube channel, during which you can see the moment he puts his head down ahead of the English anthem.
It’s unusual for the anthems to be played before a club game, particularly friendlies, but the American club wanted to honour their illustrious visitors before kick-off.
At about 3 minutes and 37 seconds into the video, McClean appears to turn in the opposite direction and look at the ground.
McClean is no stranger to controversy having continually refused to wear a shirt embroidered with a poppy during the Remembrance Day commemorations since his move over to England.
Last year, he wrote an open letter to the then Wigan chairman Dave Whelan explaining the reasons for his decision. The Derry-born midfielder said it would be ‘an act of disrespect to my people’ to wear a poppy.
The 27-time capped international moved to the Hawthorns last month on a £2.5 million deal from Wigan.
He played the full 90 minutes and was named man-of-the-match by the club’s official website.
The Baggies won last night’s game 2-1 thanks to goals from Saido Berahino and Brown Ideye.
