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Given his talent, most clubs should want to sign Joey Barton on a free transfer, but Dan 'The Betting Man' Fitch thinks they might be put off by his outspoken Tweeting and unruly temperament.


If you were asked to name the player whose name would be on the lips of every football supporter as the Premier League kicked off this week, then you'd probably go for a superstar such as Wayne Rooney or Fernando Torres.

Instead, everyone must accept second billing behind a player who turns out for a mid-table club, is available on a free transfer and has a solitary international cap.

Joey Barton is the most talked about footballer in the country right now. On and off the pitch, his antics are impossible to ignore. With Newcastle apparently willing to let him go this summer for gratis, it seems that the controversial midfielder will remain in the spotlight for the next month at least.

Barton's ubiquity in the media is a direct result of his status as the most entertaining footballer on Twitter. He is incredibly candid and willing to take on anyone that dares to have a pop at him. Barely a day goes by when he doesn't get into an online spat with a journalist and Saturday's row with Piers Morgan saw a hugely entertaining exchange of words between two men often accused of 'hacking'.

He also pulls no punches when it comes to developments at Newcastle and his regular comments on the club's transfer policy. This resulted in the management making Barton available for free, despite the fact that he has a year left on his contract and his claims that he wants to stay at the club. Newcastle are 7.8 to be relegated.

Barton has responded to the decision by quoting lyrics by The Smiths and the philosophy of Nietzsche. Internet debate rages as to whether Barton has become one of football's foremost intellectuals or has merely purchased a bumper book of quotes. Either way, his conversion would be a lot more convincing if he didn't keep refer to his every detractor as a 'helmet'.

When he took to the field against Arsenal at the weekend, Barton was sporting a Morrissey-esque rockabilly hairstyle, but the only shoegazing going on came when Alex Song stamped on him. As Barton rightly Tweeted, had the roles been reversed then he would have been torn apart by the press and Song really should have seen a red card.

Instead it was Arsenal's new signing Gervinho who was sent off, after an altercation with Barton that highlighted why he remains such an enigma. Many fans would have been applauding Barton as he hauled up the prone Ivorian and berated him for play-acting, until he hit the deck himself, after receiving a slap that even Audley Harrison would have shrugged off.

When Barton was made available, I was pretty sure that a club likely to finish in the top six would snap him up. Now I'm not so sure. Does someone like Alex Ferguson need the headache that Barton inevitably brings? Manchester United are the 2.58 favourites to win the Premier League.

Fergie hasn't been afraid of signing controversial figures in the past, so United shouldn't be completely dismissed as a destination, but Arsenal can be after Arsene Wenger ruled out a move. He probably doesn't want every training session breaking out into a 22-man brawl.

Chelsea are light in the middle of the park and could consider Barton a cheap solution, while Tottenham always seem to be in the market for a midfielder when they really need a striker. I still think that a club like Aston Villa or Stoke seems the most likely to make a move.

Barton's past misdemeanors have stopped him rising to the top. He might be trying to reinvent himself, but his outspokenness and temper may still prevent a move upwards.


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