DERRY CITY BOSS Ruaidhrí Higgins laughed off the suggestion James McClean will make a return to the club this summer. 

McClean has made no secret of his desire to one day return to his hometown club, and he is now out of contract at Wigan, for whom he impressed in a difficult season that ended in relegation back to League One. McClean himself dismissed speculation he would rejoin Derry this summer as “fake news”, and the Derry manager has now also dampened the prospect.

“Of course there’s room for him!”, replied Higgins to the question after his side’s 1-0 win away to Bohemians on Friday. 

“It might be more difficult to do than some may think. I haven’t spoken to James. I’ve spoken to him as I know him a long time, I took him under my wing when he was here as a player, but if James wants to take a 80% wage cut or a 90% wage cut then we might think about it!” 

McClean is on the cusp of fulfilling a major career ambition, as he is two appearances away from a century of senior international caps. With games next month against Greece and Gibraltar, he might become Derry’s first international centurion as soon as June. 

“James was a really shy lad when he was younger, and to have that drive and that personality, and to take the knocks he took over a long period of time and to come back fighting sums up the character he is”, said Higgins. 

“If James gets to 100 caps then nobody deserves it more than him as I know the work he puts in. He is an amazing professional and he is a brilliant person, contrary to what a lot of people would think. He does a lot of work behind the scenes that nobody hears about. I know for a fact he does a lot of work behind the scenes, charity work. Some of it has been made public but I know he does a lot of stuff that nobody hears about and he is an amazing ambassador for our city.” 

Meanwhile, Higgins says the club remain in the dark about the severity of Colm Whelan’s latest injury. Derry signed the striker from UCD as he was completing his recovery from an ACL injury, and there were fears he suffered another significant knee injury when he was forced off against Shamrock Rovers earlier this month. 

“I would love to”, said Higgins when asked if he could offer an update on Whelan’s fitness. “We can’t. I am not talking nonsense, there is no real clarity yet on what it is. He has been to see the specialist again, they are coming up with a plan, I don’t know what the plan is. It’s a bit inconclusive at the minute, so we just have to wait and see. I am not spinning ye a load of nonsense, there is no real clarity and there might not be for a couple of weeks.” 

Derry were boosted by the return of Cameron Dummigan against Bohs, and he is in contention to feature off the bench against Dundalk in tonight’s league meeting at the Brandywell.