We thought we’d seen the last of him, but no, he’s back: your angry, rather intense mate who will reel off a poetic Smiths lyric one minute and be aggressively wielding a cigar the next has returned to the Premier League (subject to international clearance). Welcome home, Joey Barton.
The midfielder, last seen annoying everyone at Rangers and betting illegally on a multitude of football matches, has re-signed with Burnley on a short-term deal just months after leading the club to the Championship title.
Barton had a successful first spell at Turf Moor under Clarets boss Sean Dyche, with the 34-year-old being named in the Championship PFA Team of the Year for 2015/16. If anyone can get the best out of football’s Nietzsche-quoting, permanently angsty bad boy, it’s Dyche. Now watch as he gets sent off in his first game for trying to fight a corner flag.
Despite the slightly pissy headline, there’s no doubt that with Barton back in the Premier League, dull moments will be few and far between.
MORE BARTON
Je m’appelle Joey, je joue le foot:
