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James McClean's wife Erin has admitted there is a "huge sense of relief" as the family prepare to return home to Northern Ireland following the veteran footballer's exit from Wrexham. The mother-of-four has spoken about the emotional weight carried by the family during her husband's 15-year spell in English football, much of it shaped by the fallout from his refusal to wear a poppy.

The 36-year-old completed a surprise return to hometown club Derry City on Saturday after agreeing a mutual termination of his contract with Championship side Wrexham. Erin hopes relocating back to Derry will allow life to become more settled after years of abuse and threats dating back to when the former Republic of Ireland international first took his stance while playing for Sunderland in 2012.

Explaining how the move came about, Erin insisted football reasons were at the heart of the decision for McClean to leave Wrexham after he saw his playing time reduced this season.

Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle, she said: "James still had 18 months left on his Wrexham contract, but I think he has always been the type of person who just wants to play football. That's the bottom line, and he hasn't been getting as many minutes for Wrexham as he’s wanted this season.

"I think when the Derry City opportunity came knocking, he couldn't look away from it. Wrexham were amazing on their end as well to get that done for him."

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McClean enjoyed huge success on the pitch in north Wales, captaining Wrexham to back-to-back promotions from League Two to the Championship. However, Erin admitted the family's experience off the pitch over the years has been more complicated.

She said: "Ninety-five per cent of the people that we've met over here have just been amazing. We have made friends that we'll always keep in touch with. That small minority did affect us during certain times, but to a certain degree it's made us who we are now and how resilient we are.

"Now, we're getting to go home and settle and hopefully we lose that negative side of things and life gets a bit more settled and easier."

The "negative side" Erin refers to is the long-running controversy surrounding McClean’s refusal to wear a poppy. His stance is rooted in his upbringing on the Creggan estate in Derry, where many families were directly affected by Bloody Sunday in 1972.

McClean has consistently said he cannot wear the poppy because it represents all conflicts involving the British Army, not solely those who died in the worl‎d wars. The issue first came to public attention when he was a 23-year-old at Sunderland and has followed him through spells at Wigan, West Brom, Stoke and Wrexham.

Over the years, McClean has received sustained abuse and death threats, particularly in the build-up to Remembrance Day. Erin has previously revealed she feared her husband would be "shot" live on television after threats were made while he was playing in England.

Despite this, McClean has said many team-mates are respectful once he explains his reasoning. He has admitted frustration at repeatedly having to justify his beliefs, saying he wishes the issue would simply "go away", but believes some critics are unwilling to listen. For Erin, the move back home represents far more than just a football transfer.

She said: "There's a huge sense of relief. But to be fair, the last few years, being at Wrexham and Wigan, they have been two fantastic clubs to deal with in regards to how they've always supported us and had our backs. It has gotten easier the last few years, but moving home will just take it to a different level."

McClean left Wrexham with a heartfelt tribute, praising the club's handling of his exit and singling out owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac for making his time there so special. Manager Phil Parkinson also hailed him as a "great servant" and said the move was right for both player and family.

He is now set to link up with his younger brother Patrick at Derry City as he plans to finish his career back where it all began.