Of course not. For you can dislike the King, even hate him if you want. Hell, you can join in a bunch of players singing about how much you "hate the phucking King", if you like.
But that's not the point, is it? Rather in the hoohaa which followed, rather than staying silent, or muttering something bland or mildly conciliatory ("Sorry, I just got carried away in the heat of the moment, apologies if I offended anyone etc"), no our James was entirely unrepentent, doubling down effectively.
And that's the thing with him: It's. Always. One. Thing. After. Another.
Meanwhile, contrast that with his brother Patrick. He's been playing for Glentoran, in the heart of (Loyalist) East Belfast since 2019, where he established himself as a bit of a fans' favourite. Then about a year ago, he had some sort of personal crisis (drink-related?) and suddenly walked out on his contract in mid-season, to take up work on a building site in Dublin - he was done with football, he said, at the age of 26.
A few months later he got himself sorted, regretted what he'd done, apologised to the club, his fellow players and the fans, and asked to come back. And he's been accepted back, no hard feelings:
https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/s...246876185.html
Now I don't suppose Patrick has any great affection for the King, either, unlike the club's fans! Then again, we don't know what he thinks, since he doesn't feel the need to tell everyone about this sort of crap all the time, nor (presumably) does he imagine that the rest of us want or need to hear it either.
Meaning that if James only had a fraction of the class of his brother, then he (James) would not be forever making headlines etc, to no good purpose whatever for himself, or anyone else.