The Canaries were easily defeated 4-0 by Daniel Farke’s side at Elland Road, failing to put a hand on the Whites during a humiliating night.
It has sparked speculation about what comes next, with fans enraged by the defeat and wondering how City’s veteran squad could fail to perform at their peak on such a grand scale.
McLean found it difficult to answer that question immediately following the defeat, instead apologising for his performance.
“It’s been a challenging season at times, but we’ve created opportunities for ourselves by working hard. “The fans have always supported us, and we’ve let them down tonight,” McLean reflected in the bowels of a joyous Elland Road.
“It’s gone in the night. That hard work that we built together is no longer relevant. Back to the drawing board.
“It’s difficult to talk about now because of how terribly things went. I apologise for what happened tonight.
Norwich had only one effort on goal and were porous in defence as Leeds’ attacking prowess ran riot, earning Farke’s team a trip to Wembley Stadium and a chance to return to the Premier League.
McLean expressed his disappointment at the missed opportunity, lamenting an error-filled night for the Canaries.
“It hurts harder since we didn’t give ourselves a fair chance in the game. We knew what we were getting into and what was at stake, but we didn’t do enough to cross the finish line or give ourselves the opportunity to go to the next stage.
“That is the most disappointing thing: we were never in the game.” Seven minutes in, we give ourselves so much to do, and we actually do very little,” he remarked.
“These are the games you want to play as a footballer, but we haven’t performed well. We have done nothing to indicate that we wish to be here.
“We fought so hard to get here, and then to throw it away like that is the most upsetting part. If you go out fighting, you can accept it a little better, but we gave ourselves no chance.”
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