James McClean fined by Stoke for balaclava Instagram post

The club confirmed the punishment in a short statement.

Irish international James McClean has been fined two weeks' wages by his club Stoke City, after posting a picture on his Instagram account yesterday. He has also agreed to delete his account from the popular social media channel. The former Derry City man, who has experienced significant sectarian abuse in recent seasons, posted an image to Instagram in which he was wearing a balaclava while speaking to two of his children, with a caption reading "Today's school lesson - history". McClean has routinely received abuse from fans in England due to his refusal to wear the poppy during November, something a number of managers have backed him on. In a short statement released by the club today, Stoke confirmed the fine;

"Stoke City can confirm that, following an internal disciplinary review, disciplinary action has been taken against James McClean for an inappropriate social media post. McClean has been fined two weeks’ wages by the Club and has also agreed to delete his Instagram account. The player has expressed contrition and recognises that the post was ill advised and offensive. He said: “I never wanted to cause any offence but I now realise that I did so and for that I apologise unreservedly. I have spoken to the Club and will be deleting my Instagram account.” The Club and the player will be making no further comment on the matter."

The 30 year-old has enjoyed a good season to date with Stoke, clocking up 27 appearances and notching 6 goals so far.