MCCLEAN FURORE WON’T AFFECT US
STEVEN DAVIS hopes Northern Ireland produce a derby display to eclipse any potential James Mcclean factor at The Aviva.
Mcclean, who switched allegiance to the Republic after representing the Irish FA at underage level, is poised to face Michael O’neill’s men in Dublin.
And while the Stoke City winger has emerged as a bete noire figure for a section of the Green and White Army, Davis is eager on-pitch matters dominate the post match narrative.
Asked about Mcclean’s recent fallout with some Stoke fans over his refusal to wear a poppy on his club shirt, the Northern Ireland captain said: “I don’t think that’s going to carry into this game.
“James has done well for the Republic and I’m sure he’ll want to go out and put in another good performance.
“For us, it’s important we concentrate on ourselves. There will be an edge to the game, no doubt about it, but I think that’s a good thing because it brings something to the game.
“The players are very familiar with each other and it’s like playing any of the home nations. There’ll be a determination from both sides to get a result.” Davis, who will win his 106th cap at The Aviva, recognises the wider significance of a “big November” ahead of the Euro 2020 qualifiers which kick off in March.
Northern Ireland, who conclude their Nations League group at home to Austria on Sunday, are in need of a lift after a run of just one win in their last six outings.
Three defeats in the Nations League mean O’neill’s men will be relegated into the third tier of the competition if Austria avoid defeat to Bosnia in Vienna this evening.
“It’s really important over these next two games that we get back to getting results,” said Davis. “We want to go into the Euro qualifiers with as much confidence as possible.
“I think we’ve taken some good steps up until this point, so I believe we’re on the right path. but it’s important we get results along the way to show we’re doing things right.
“There are obviously things we can improve on and this is another opportunity for us to go out and try to grow as a team, but of course we’ll be looking for a result.
“We know we’ve been playing well, but it’s just about to form that into results now. If we can do that this month, we can go into the qualifiers in March with a lot of belief.” MICHAEL O’NEILL is still waiting on Michael Duffy to “pick up the phone” to tell him he has switched his allegiance to the Republic of Ireland.
The Dundalk winger, crowned PFAI player of the year, played for Northern REP IRELAND N IRELAND TV TIMES: Live on Sky Sports Football from 7.30pm Ireland at underage level and was part of the senior squad two years ago.
But the former Celtic starlet has told the FAI he is now committed to playing for the Republic and is currently awaiting international clearance from FIFA.
Asked for his reaction to