PFA to offer help to bad boy Barton

JOEY BARTON will be offered help by the Professional Footballers’ Association after being suspended by Manchester City following a violent training ground altercation with team-mate Ousmane Dabo.

City boss Stuart Pearce acted swiftly to ban Barton until the end of the season following the incident, which left Dabo requiring hospital treatment for cuts to his face.

Amid growing speculation that City are now ready to off-load their controversial midfielder, who has three years left on his contract, the PFA are to seek out the full facts regarding the incident.

But PFA deputy chief executive Mick McGuire said his organisation had no immediate complaints over the club’s move to ban Barton until the summer break.

McGuire said: “We will offer Joey help and if there is a requirement for mediation we will be there. We have spoken to the club and are in the process of speaking to Joey as well to get the full facts.

“Once City have made their judgement we will be a position to decide whether in our opinion it was the right one or not.”

Meanwhile City supporters have reacted with dismay to the latest incident, which comes at a time when former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is contemplating taking a controlling stake in the club.

Shinawatra’s accountants have made a proposal to City, and will complete due diligence before advising their client whether to table a formal bid.

But Dave Wallace, editor of City’s leading fanzine, ‘King of the Kippax’, says fans have become fed up with an under-performing team, misbehaving players and takeover stories.

Wallace said: “We have got more turmoil again involving Joey Barton and it comes soon after we had Richard Dunne making criticisms a short time ago and it looks like a sign of very weak management.”

Shinawatra’s previous interest in Liverpool is the source of some concern for City fans, as are claims from Amnesty International of a poor human rights record in Thailand under his government.