Most Hated Men in Football – Part 5

Posted by Stan Hughes in Most Hated Men in Football, Players, Premiership on May 4th, 2009 | 5 responses

Joey Barton – Newcastle United

Most Hated Men in Football

Never one to stray too far from the news, during his short professional career with Manchester City and Newcastle United Joey Barton has mixed glimpses of talent with incessant football and criminal offense. A fiery and ambitious character on and off the field, Barton’s outspoken nature has seen him twice charged with violent conduct and on one occasion, in May 2008, imprisoned for six months following charges of common assault and affray. Despite his collection of offenses, one thing you can’t argue with is his appetite for success. Barton grew up on a poor council estate, he’s seen the inside of a jail cell and has been kicked out of Manchester but he always comes raring back. He marked his most recent comeback to the game with a red card following a horror lunge on Xabi Alonso during Newcastle’s thrashing at the hands of Liverpool on Sunday. Whether he will be given one more chance by the Newcastle management or the Premier League authorities remains to be seen. Either way, you can bet your mortgage that Barton will always bare the wrath of supporters across the country because he has that unique footballing talent but keeps throwing it all away.