Barton, dressed in black, fled court after he was discharged before later leaving with his wife, who was wearing a pink trouser suit

Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton’s trial for allegedly assaulting his wife during a drunken row has been delayed after she wrote a letter to prosecutors in a bid to “exculpate” her husband, a court has heard.

A football coach has told a court hearing the trial of Joey Barton how he found his boss lying shocked and bloodied in the tunnel of a stadium after a League One match.

A football manager has told a jury how the only person he saw after he was shoved into a metal post in the tunnel after a League One match, injuring his face, was rival coach Joey Barton.

The charge against Barton, 38, of Widnes, Cheshire, relates to an incident at a residential property in Kew, south-west London, on June 2 in which his wife Georgia suffered a head injury.

Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton is set to face court on a charge of assault by beating after a woman suffered a head injury. The former Premier League footballer is due to appear at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court in south-west London on Monday.

Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton has been charged with assault by beating after a woman suffered a head injury. The former Premier League footballer is due to appear at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court in south-west London on Monday.