James McClean: ‘Wearing the poppy was just never going to happen’

The Guardian

The former Republic of Ireland international on growing up in a community still reeling from the Troubles and the controversy that scarred his career “The perception of me is that, basically, I am a madman,” James McClean says calmly. “I’m outspoken. I’m a loudmouth. I’m very opinionated and I hate all things British. That’s from people who don’t know me. The reality is quite the opposite. I’m pretty boring. I go training, go home and switch off. A lot of my days are quite bland, quite basic.” McClean sounds as sane as he looks gaunt on a bleak Monday in Derry. He spent 14 years in English…