Its Question Time: Joey Barton - saint or sinner?

Burnley is the next stop on the Road to Wembley from Scotland. An interesting link between Burnley FC and Bella Caledonia is provided by Joseph Anthony Barton. More commonly know as Joey Barton the Burnley midfielder started the season at Rangers where his tempestuous short stay at Ibrox enhanced his reputation as one of the most controversial figures in the game in modern times.

Ready for Rangers? Barton signs on at Ibrox last summer

I had intended writing a ‘devils advocate’ piece about Joey noting (for the sake of producing a reaction from the blog readers) that he is really a nice guy and much misunderstood. However looking through his record of past misdemeanours has made even this ‘for the sake of argument’ approach untenable. So, ok, lets get the bad stuff out of the way first. Barton has been convicted not once but twice on charges of violence. One of these convictions saw the courtroom see footage of Barton punching a man more than 20 times and leaving him in a very sorry state. He was incarcerated for that assault and spent 77 days in prison.

Paggering with fellow professional footballers seems to be a speciality with Joey and Barton caused actual bodily harm to a Manchester City team mate Ousmane Dabo in a training ground bust-up in 2007. He has been charged by the FA on 3 occasions for violent conduct: (i) for the assault on Dabo; (ii) for punching Morten Gamst Peterson in the stomach and (iii) for attacking three players while being in the act of being sent off while playing for QPR in the final league game of season 2011-12.

Barton (centre) sent off in 2012 and then attacks three players

His lashing out can be verbal too. When playing for Newcastle in 2009 he told his boss Alan Shearer that he was “a shit manager with shit tactics”. Events on the pitch late in that season validated Barton’s view. Barton has also been found guilty of breaching regulations with regard to betting and it is alleged that he placed over 1200 bets on football matches when as a professional footballer he is not permitted to do so. In 2007 Barton admitted to being an alcoholic.

Barton has been sent off 6 times in the Premier League placing him the all time top ten for dismissals. He also famously stubbed out a cigar in the eye of a youth player at the Manchester City Christmas party in 2004. Joey hails from a family where trouble can be found around every corner and his younger brother is serving a life sentence after being found guilty of a racially motivated murder of a black teenager in 2005.

Back at his spiritual home: Barton snarling and pointing at Turf Moor

So is there a good side? Well yes, and also a sensitive and humorous side to his complex personality. His charity work is prolific and diverse. Barton is a patron of the Tamsin Gulvin Fund, a charity set up to support people who have addiction problems and no financial support. The ex Arsenal captain Tony Adams, who had been impressed with Barton's attitude during his involvement in the Sporting Chance Clinic appointed him to this role. He is a part of the 'Get Hooked on Fishing' campaign, designed to keep children out of trouble by encouraging them to take up fishing. He has also helped fund a new children's rehabilitation unit at a hospital in Manchester. In 2011, he began writing a regular column in ‘The Big Issue’ to publicise the plight of the homeless and vulnerably housed.

Unusually for a professional footballer, Barton is not averse to giving his opinions on political issues. His twitter feed has more that 3 million followers and the eclectic feed also comments on the works of Nietzsche and George Orwell and has cult status. His views and his interesting musings saw Barton invited to appear on Question Time in 2014. Unfortunately young Joey blotted his copybook with his very first contribution. In answering a question as to why UKIP were gaining popularity the boy from the Huyton estate in Liverpool noted that: "If I'm somewhere and there was four really ugly girls, I'm thinking she's not the worst – that's all UKIP are”. A comment that saw him pilloried for demonstrating a sexist attitude.

Barton is a prominent supporter of gay rights and spoke out on a BBC documentary in 2012 on homophobia in football and noted: “that if a player comes out then certain managers will discriminate but more fool them for their lack of social awareness and intelligence”. He expressed the belief that there will be an openly gay player in the Premier League in the next ten years.

I personally like Joey Barton’s sense of humour and his bravado. On arrival in Glasgow to sign for Rangers he noted that the Celtic manager Brendan Rogers had whitened straightened teeth and a fake tan that suggested he was a man going through a mid life crisis.

An orange man at Celtic? Tan man Rogers has a great set of gnashers

Joey Barton did not last long in Scotland. His overwhelming sense of self belief is often perceived as arrogant and whereas the Glaswegians love a ‘gallous punter’ they don’t take to a big mouth who is all mouth and no trousers.  In addition to goading the Celtic manager he also taunted the Celtic captain on his arrival in Bella Caledonia. He commented that “Scott Brown does not come in to my league when it comes to talent”. Unfortunately for Joey he was not able to back up this proud boast on the pitch and symbolically his last game for Rangers was in the Old Firm game in September 2016 where Brown bossed the midfield and Barton was marked absent.

Brown and Barton go head to head in the Celtic v Rangers clash

 His time at Ibrox was up when, in the aftermath of the Old Firm game, he blamed team mates for their inept performance and midfielder Andy Halliday bore the brunt of his foul mouthed tirade. The manager deemed his conduct to be unacceptable and he was suspended from the club. On his return he was instructed to train with the Rangers youth players and in the recent transfer window Burnley rescued Barton’s career when offering him a short contract to get him away from Glasgow. He re-joined the Clarets last month. It could be argued that Joey has some unfinished business at Turf Moor. After a very successful season in 2015-16 he was voted their player of the season and he was instrumental in helping Burnley gain promotion to the Premier League. Hence it was a surprise when he chose to reject a new contract and instead head for the goldfish bowl that is Ibrox Stadium. Many think he is now back at his spiritual home. Certainly Sean Dyche, the manager at Turf Moor, knows how to handle the mercurial Barton and already is getting the best out of him in his second spell with the club. The inability of Mark Warburton, the Rangers manager, to get a tune out of Joey might ultimately cost him his job. Warburton signed Barton last summer as his marquee signing and reportedly Rangers paid him £25,000 per week. This is a big salary for a lad that you choose to firstly suspend from the club and then instruct to play with the apprentices.

Joseph Anthony Barton is certainly not a saint. The question is ‘is the football world a better place with Barton in it or without him in it’? On balance I am going to answer that his presence within the beautiful game enhances it. He has done many many bad things in his life – but hey we have all done bad things. I know I have. In my simplistic view of the world every person has an upside and a downside. My opinion is that Joey’s upside is bigger than his downside. I don’t like violence and Joey Barton is a violent individual and counseling and anger management has helped him a wee bit but the fire still rages. His philanthropy, sensitivity, humour and compassion mitigate for his abhorrent behaviour in my view. In a conversation with my Brighton based pal Joe Black (last seen at the Seagulls v Dons match on the Road to Wembley from Scotland) we agreed that the footballers of the modern age are like the rock stars of the 70s. All that money being thrown at you at an early age does change you. Just like Led Zeppelin hurling colour TVs out of hotel windows back in the day, stubbing cigars out in peoples faces is not normal behaviour. Joe Black reckons that rock stars exhibited arrested development traceable back to the point where they became famous. We agreed that the same was true for some of the modern superstar Premier Division footballers. This is not an excuse it is a reason. On the positive side Barton has also used his superstar status to do good in the world. I like the fact that inherently the human being is flawed and I like Joey Barton. I am looking forward to seeing him strutting his stuff for Burnley against Lincoln City in the next match on the Road to Wembley from Scotland.

Before the big match that the Clarets and the Imps have league business to attend to. On Saturday the Imps are at home to Woking in the Vanarama League and on Sunday Turf Moor will host a visit from Chelsea. Will the Imps wallop Woking? Will Burnley burn off Chelsea. Will Joey Barton get sent off? Will I get my ticket sorted for the FA Cup tie? Come back here on Sunday evening to find out … and … keep reading.