With all of Monday's news surrounding Jack Grealish and his decision to represent Ireland, many have taken to social media to complain or commend the young Aston Villa playmaker, depending on which side of the argument that they fall on.
While Grealish certainly wouldn't have been the first English born player to pull on the green jersey, much has been made about his decision to align with England despite representing Ireland at underage levels. It's clear that the young man had conflicting feelings regarding where he is from, and that's understandable considering he was born into an Irish family in England, but one man who had no such conflictions was Kevin Kilbane.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Kilbane offered his thoughts on his own personal experience, and this is why we love you Kevin.
I grew up wanting to play for Ireland, I think that's well documented, I was called up for England at youth level, but I turned it down basically, I didn't want to play for England, so I'm very different from Jack in that respect.
I would have rather had one cap for Ireland, than 100 caps for England, that's what I felt at 17. Growing up, I was supporting Ireland at Euro 88 and Italia 90, that's where I was.
Zinedine Kilbane went on to make 110 caps for Ireland, and we're glad for it.
He may not have been the best left-back in the World after he made the shift from the wing, but he always gave 100% because you knew that when he pulled on the green jersey he didn't want to be anywhere else.
via BBC.co.uk
