James McClean has hit out at his club Derry City over their attempts to terminate his contract due to concerns over his fitness levels.
The 37-year-old former Republic of Ireland winger joined Derry from Wrexham in January, but hasn't been included in their squad since the start of August.
The Professional Football Association of Ireland (PFAI), who are representing McClean in his contract dispute with Derry, said in a statement: "He has trained fully for the last nine weeks and has made himself available for selection. He recently played in an internal match arranged by the club. He believes he can help the team and has not been provided with a satisfactory reason for being left out of the squad.
"He believes that the reason for this is a dispute which first arose in early August when the chairman of the club stated that his contract had been terminated."
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The PFAI added that Derry have tried to invoke Section 18 of the Standard Players Contract that entitles them to terminate a player's contract with six months notice if he is found to have a "permanent incapacity" by an independent phyisician.
"To date, no physician, either independent or agreed, has reached such a conclusion. Indeed, an Orthopaedic Surgeon, Mr Desmond Gibson, who saw him at the request of the club as recently as 21 September said he believes he can continue to play football as long as he is not in severe pain. He is not in severe pain and is willing, able and anxious to return to playing for Derry City," they said in their statement.
McClean said the dispute had been "one of the most difficult periods of my life" in a statement, and called Derry's conduct "incomprehensible."
"I will decide when I retire. Nobody else will make that decision for me. When that time comes, my body will tell me. This is my life and my career. I deserve the same duty of care and fairness given to the majority of other players at Derry City FC," he said.
"While the PFAI and James have chosen to publicise selective elements of the medical advice received, the Club does not propose to comment further on James' current medical condition," Derry said in a statement.
"The Club is fully aware of the obligations it owes to all contracted players. All squad members who are deemed fully fit remain available for selection. Ultimately, matchday selection remains the sole prerogative of the management team, acting in conjunction with guidance from our medical staff.
McClean spent three years at Derry between 2008 and 2011, before joining Sunderland. He has over 100 caps for Ireland.