McClean: There were times in the season I wanted to leave

His desire to spend a stint at boyhood idols Celtic is apparent but the first priority for James McClean is the immediate uncertainty over his club future.

West Brom rejected two bids for the Ireland winger, one in August from Burnley and another during the January transfer window by Derby, and are braced for more interest now that their Premier League status is gone.

For McClean’s part, he’s not of a mind to be engineering a move from a club still bristling from a first relegation for nine years. Still, while he’s contracted to the Baggies, the 29-year-old possesses the pragmatism to realise money and status talks.