Roy Keane Confronted James McClean Over Pre-Match Photo

Roy Keane, the former Manchester United hardman and assistant manager for the Republic of Ireland, confronted winger James McClean at halftime during a friendly match against Mexico in June 2017. The incident, detailed in McClean's autobiography "The Walls," occurred after McClean posed for a photo on the pitch with Irish professional boxer Michael Conlan before the game.

According to McClean, who was captain for the match that Ireland lost 3-1, Keane approached him aggressively at halftime. "Martin had just finished his bit when Roy came over, got right in my face and started fing me out of it," McClean recounted. Keane reportedly accused McClean of not being focused on the game, stating, "Look at you, the fing captain, fing giving off, yeah? You were taking pictures before the game with fing Mick Conlan. Your head isn’t f***ing on it."

McClean, who had given away a penalty in the first half, felt deeply upset by Keane's criticism but initially did not retaliate. He described feeling "spewing over it for the entire flight home" and attempted to address the issue directly with Keane.

Keane later visited McClean in his room while the winger was in the gym. During this second encounter, Keane accused McClean of having a big ego and brought up an incident from McClean's time at Sunderland when manager Martin O'Neill had allegedly dropped him after learning of his purchase of a high-value supercar. Keane also shared that he often "went home and screamed into the pillow" during his tenure with Ireland due to the perceived poor standard of training.

McClean defended his actions and expressed his respect for Keane and his commitment to playing for Ireland. He recalled that Keane eventually conceded that the photos did not look like good preparation, though McClean disagreed. The disagreement was ultimately left unresolved.

McClean concluded that Keane was "sound" with him afterward, and he felt his performances in subsequent matches were strong. He even marked his next game against Uruguay with a "selfie celebration" to make his point.