FAI expect to have McClean clearance by end of month

THE FAI expect Fifa to have processed James McClean’s application to formally switch his international allegiance to the Republic of Ireland before the friendly against the Czech Republic at the end of this month.

It remains uncertain, though, whether Giovanni Trapattoni, who names his squad for the game this Friday, will avail of the opportunity to reward the 22-year-old’s remarkable progress in recent weeks with a first senior cap.

Trapattoni sent out mixed messages regarding the former Derry City winger last month when he spoke with different sections of the media during a flying visit to Dublin immediately before heading to London to watch the Sunderland winger against Chelsea. As luck would have it, the game was McClean’s least impressive display for his new club since breaking into the first team.

At that stage, however, there were also some doubts about when the player would become officially available to the manager with suggestions, flatly denied by the IFA, that the process of completing the necessary paperwork was being dragged out in Belfast.

Now, it appears, it is actually with Fifa, and McClean is potentially on the verge of a first call-up and cap, something that could well pave the way to a place at the European Championship finals in Poland this June.

Trapattoni, though, might yet choose to ignore the young winger’s claims on Friday given that he has close to a full panel to choose from, and he has suggested that he is inclined to stick with the group that got Ireland to Euro 2012 in the first place.

Trapattoni previously bowed to pressure in the case of James McCarthy, bringing the young midfielder on for the last three minutes of Ireland’s home win over Macedonia last March, as much, it seemed, to put an end to the constant questions regarding the player’s future as to actually resolve it.

But he has pointedly ignored calls for other players to be included in or recalled to his side, with subsequent loss of form sometimes serving to justify the Italian’s stance.

McClean’s problem is that, enormously impressive as he has been since making his Premier League debut back on December 11th, he has played just 11 games for Sunderland, which the generally loyal Trapattoni may not consider enough to constitute a compelling case for ditching a long-standing regular.

Miss out now, though, and the Derryman will face a nervous wait until virtually the eve of the tournament to discover if he will travel, as there are no more friendly games before the end of the club campaign.

Even at this early stage, however, Martin O’Neill already insists that his player is “more than capable of going to the Euros” and while not commenting specifically on McClean’s case for international inclusion, his Sunderland team-mate John O’Shea appears to make a pretty decent case for it in the wake of his match-winning display at Stoke over the weekend.

“James has been superb,” said the former Manchester United man. “His goal against Stoke was fantastic and he really has been inspirational for us over the last few weeks.

“The goal came from a nice little move and you saw the composure that James had to slot the ball home with his right foot. It was a fantastic finish and James is getting better and better. He’s dealing with opponents well, learning the game quickly and adapting very well to the Premier League.”

Leon Best, meanwhile, did enough over the last couple of weeks to remind Trapattoni of his ability to do much the same, but the Newcastle striker is definitely out of contention for a return to the Ireland squad this month after damaging medial ligaments at the weekend. The 25-year-old will have a scan to determine the extent of the problem today but Alan Pardew estimates that he will be laid up for around six weeks.

Whoever travels in the end, the FAI have confirmed negotiations have concluded in relation to the Irish team’s proposed training camp at Montecatini immediately prior to the European Championships.

The camp will take place between May 27th and June 3rd. Ireland play Bosnia Herzegovina in Dublin the night before leaving for Italy, while confirmation of a game against Hungary in Budapest on June 4th is expected this week.