Scotland midfielder Shaun Maloney has rejected claims he has moved to an inferior league in America.
Scotland assistant manager Mark McGhee has labelled the MLS as being of a similar standard to the English League 1 or Championship.
But Maloney, who joined Chicago Fire from then Championship club Wigan Athletic in January, reckons the former Dons manager has got it wrong.
LA Galaxy attacker Robbie Keane is expected to start for the Irish in Dublin against Scotland on Saturday and next season he will be joined across the pond by the likes of former England internationals Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.
Maloney, 32, who was born in Malaysia but raised in Aberdeen, insists his new career in America has had no impact on his abilities.
He said: “I feel it was a little harsh. It’s really difficult to pitch the MLS at a level. I’ve said Championship previously but within that there are some incredible players such as Robbie Keane, Kaka, and now Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.
“It’s difficult to pigeon hole it as a standard in comparison to other leagues because there are these players coming from the highest clubs in Europe and then there are different levels of players. It’s quite difficult.
“I can understand if it comes across a little bit negative from Mark but it is quite difficult to measure the MLS against another British league.
“Some of the matches are more physically demanding than I’ve been used to. The standard of player differs vastly through each team. I don’t think it has affected me for the last four months.”
Saturday’s game at Aviva Stadium is pivotal to Scotland’s hopes of qualifying for the finals of Euro 2016, with Gordon Strachan’s side two points ahead of Ireland in Group D.
Former Celtic midfielder Maloney scored the decisive goal in the last meeting between the sides, a 1-0 win for Scotland at Parkhead in November, and reckons this weekend’s match could be similarly tight.
Maloney added: “It was a really tense match, which was understandable. It was one of the games, with so much pressure on, and there isn’t much between the sides. It felt like a really good game to be a part of – the atmosphere, trying to find a way to score a goal. I don’t think this weekend’s game will be too dissimilar.”
Maloney’s winner against Ireland, managed by his former Hoops manager Martin O’Neill, was a superbly-rehearsed move from a short corner he took himself, exchanging passes with Ikechi Anya and Scott Brown before curling home from the edge of the box.
It was a memorable moment for the Tartan Army but Maloney says he has resisted any temptation to relive his winning moment, adding: “At the time I was aware of the moment in the stadium. I haven’t really been in a stadium that reacted like that for a while, probably the FA Cup final with Wigan at Wembley two years ago, when we won 1-0 in injury time against Manchester City, was the last time.
“It was a similar feeling when that part of the stadium erupted, so I was pretty aware how everyone was feeling. I haven’t looked at the goal – I don’t tend to do that much. I’m sure I will at some point in the next few years. I haven’t even watched the game again, although we’ve seen parts over the last few days.”