Keegan: Joey still has a lot to offer

Mar 15 2008 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

It is a lot better than the jail cell he called home over the Christmas period but Joey Barton’s luxury apartment on Tyneside can probably still feel like a prison at times.

IT will probably have all the trappings of fame and fortune. A big, widescreen plasma television, a state-of-the-art kitchen, feather-soft pillows and mattresses, as well as private parking and a concierge – but anywhere can feel like a prison cell once you have been told you must stay there.

That is something Joey Barton is discovering as he tries to balance the pressure of Newcastle United’s relegation battle with the stress and strain of two impending court cases.

Barton will be tried for assault twice in the summer following two separate incidents, one involving his former Manchester City team-mate Ousmane Dabo in May last year and the other concerning an alleged altercation in Liverpool city centre over the Christmas period.

The latter initially led the troubled midfielder to spend a few nights in a prison cell after his initial application for bail had been refused by a judge in December. Bail has since been granted on appeal, but it still places strict restrictions on his movements, restrictions which forced him to miss the 3-0 defeat at Liverpool last weekend because he is prevented from visiting the city centre of his hometown until after the trial.

Thankfully for a young man who has found release in football, the restrictions do not prevent him from training and playing for Newcastle, although they have effectively made him a prisoner inside his own home once he has finished.

Given the potential punishment that awaits him should he be found guilty of any wrong-doing in the summer, few will sympathise with Barton’s plight. There are plenty of people in the same situation and under the same level of stress who do not have a £66,000-a-week wage packet to comfort them at night, but he is at least trying to make the best of things in terms of his job at Newcastle United.

“I think that Joey is dealing with events off-field very well, to be honest,” explained Kevin Keegan, who is likely to recall him into the centre of midfield when Newcastle travel to Birmingham City on Monday night. “It’s not easy and there are a lot of restrictions upon him, which he understands and we understand, but considering it all I think he has coped with it fantastically.

“We speak to him every day, as we do with all the players. He’s there a lot longer than the other players because, once he leaves the training ground, he’s got to go back to his flat and he’s got to stay in there. So he tends to spend longer at the training ground doing extra bits of training and filling in time, as you would expect, because it’s better to be at the training ground around people than it is to be stuck on his own around his apartment.”

“But I think that he is pretty focused and, considering all that has gone on, he seems to be okay with that. It’s how he handles it that matters and then we can help him a lot, which we are.”

Off-field controversy aside, Barton has had more than his fair share of critics this season and there is no doubt the 25-year-old’s form has failed to live up to the reputation he came with from Manchester City last summer.

At times, his passing has been nothing short of dreadful and there has been little sign of the dynamic box-to-box midfielder who shone at Eastlands, and there has been just one goal, a penalty against Fulham back in December – United’s last league win.

However, a broken foot in pre-season did not help him find his form at the start of the season and, for a player who appears to be so forthright and bubbly whenever you meet him, he has looked surprisingly fragile in terms of confidence on the pitch.

Yet, for all of his problems, there were signs in his last appearance against Blackburn Rovers of the Barton who attracted the interest of half of the Premier League clubs in the summer.

And for Keegan, who brought him through the Academy system at Manchester City into the first team, an in-form Barton has plenty to offer his side as they strive to stave off the threat of relegation. “Every player we’ve got is valuable because we’re a small squad,” explained Keegan. “He’s got something to offer. He’s different to any other player that we’ve got and, in that respect, he’s important.

“It’s not been ideal that he has been in and out of the side, but I knew when I came here that, because of the bail conditions, that would happen. He wouldn’t be able to play in Liverpool against Liverpool or Everton so I knew that. I also knew that when I first came he was actually living down south.

“That’s the thing. You’ve got to understand that because of what happened certain things have to take precedence over his football career, but I am delighted to have him back in contention for the Birmingham game.”

I think Joey is pretty focused. It’s how he handles it that matters and then we can help him a lot