It is difficult to figure out who is to blame in the whole Joey Barton saga, as him and his employers are as bad as each other at decision making. Barton’s criticism of the Newcastle hierarchy is not being questioned by anyone, particularly the Newcastle fans. What is questionable however, is the character he is portraying on Twitter.
For once is his career, Barton is on the right side of an argument and as a result could receive an arguably undeserved career boost. Barton has made every mistake under the sun as a person more so than a footballer, however, this could be his chance to make it right and redeem himself if at all possible.
The fact that Newcastle are willing to part with arguably their best player on a free transfer, is as hard to believe as their decision to allow Kevin Nolan to leave for half nothing to West Ham. The fact that Nolan was willing to drop down a division to leave the Magpies is a worrying sign for the faithful Newcastle supporters.
I am not sure if it is something in the water at St James Park but decisions and careers tend to go Hayward for the personnel there. Shearer the Messiah was brought in and that didn’t work, King Kev was brought in that didn’t work, then Chris Houghton stepped up and did an excellent job and what happened, he was sacked. Just when everything seemed stable at Newcastle, Houghton was sacked and replaced by Alan Pardrew. Since Pardrew was brought in, Newcastle have continued to improve, boasting the solid midfield pairing of Nolan and Barton.
The incredible 4-4 draw with Arsenal last season showed a team spirit that has been missing in the Toon army for too many seasons now. The fact the two men driving the engine of that team are now going to be playing elsewhere is unthinkable. Joey Barton is not an angel, he is one thing however, a gifted central midfielder who can drive a team on. Should Barton keep his head down and maybe his tweets to himself, he may just find himself at a top Premiership club in the coming weeks.
The early indications are that Arsenal, Spurs and Stoke are in for midfielder, and Barton may be just what the Arsenal team may need – a fighter and a ball winner. Don’t expect the Barton saga to end without a twist in the tale. Newcastle has remained very tight lipped so far.
No comments:
Post a Comment