Regardless of the footballing qualities of Barton - and IMO you're seriously over-estimating them - football isn't like any other business . Everyone should know that much by now ! There are all too many supporters out there who would not countenance Barton playing here , even if he was a free transfer playing for a fraction of what he was before .

The board cannot send out glossy season ticket flyers emphasising that we're a family club , encouraging kids and families to attend and then have thugs like Barton pulling on the shirt . At the very least it would give the waverers an excuse not to come down to Ewood ; at the worst it deter present supporters from continuing to do so .

It is not as if we have the choice between keeping the present set of midfielders OR signing this ar$e . There are other choices out there ...most of them not raving psychopaths .

Signing Barton would be madness for Allardyce ; if it went wrong his detractors would regard it as the final nail in his coffin . And all for a player who's just a tadge above the average prem midfield player ? I can't believe he's stupid enough to risk it .......again . Nor should anyone encourage him in contemplating such idiocy .

Amen!! I've not read every post in this thread but, has anyone mentioned Joey's brother who is in prison for murder(i believe)? Now you can't judge Joey Barton by looking at his brother but, one has to wonder what kind upbringing they've had. It would seem to have been a violent one. Right, i do not really know what their background is but, there is evidence here. If in fact the Barton's have suffered from this kind of early life then it's not going to just disappear and certainly not anytime soon. He's got a bad temper. He acts very rashly when things are not going his way. He acts in a cowardly manner in all the incidents over the years. He preys on people in prone positions(cigarette in the eye,Dabo blindside), the kid he picked on that was outnumbered 3 to 1. He doesn't attack or confront people that might be his size or larger or that are not in prone positions. He's cannot control his temper and it's not going to change without therapy.

I don't care how talented he is as a footballer, he is in fact a violent thug and a complete disgrace to the game of football and himself (not that he is likely to care about that last bit with his mindset).

I certainly don't want to see him anywhere near Blackburn Rovers ever again, but unfortunately the ruling powers in football will all look on him as a money making commodity and he will still be employed by some PL team if not Newcastle.

Agreed. And i add that Shearer had it right when he was quoted as saying, "he's a coward". It's one thing to be afraid. To suffer from fears of any kind. It's another to attack someone that you perceive as(and in fact are) weaker, smaller then you and/or in a prone position. Barton is coward of the latter kind!!!

The tackle on Alonso was not in itself life threatening and did not maim Alonso. However, Barton got very little or none of the ball so, the tackle was directly aimed at Alonso. Barton's stupidity and temper put the referee in a position where he had to act.

Weren't we reported to be sniffing around in his direction a couple of seasons ago?

You would know better then I. I am a fairly new supporter. The football fever bit me while watching a Charlton-Fulham derby in the Spring of 2004. So, sometime in the summer of 2004 i decided to pick a team to follow. I also live in the US so, do not hear as much news as yourself would. But, if what you're saying is true someone may have had a change of heart or was enlightened. I just cannot imagine anyone, especially Mr. Hughes, wanting Joey Barton tearing down what he's worked so hard to build. He's a bad egg, a bad apple. I feel he would destroy any good chemistry anywhere he go's.

In addition, as long as Mr. Hughes has a say in the matter, i can't imagine he would want Joey Barton.

Barton has shown he can play very well but, it comes in short spurts and doesn't seem to duplicate itself from match to match. It more than likely is a lack of concentration. That is hardly worth the risk of a signing. Along with that his potential(????) will always be trumped by his temper tantrums. A brilliant play or strike one game and what we saw against Sunderland the next. He is bound to be disruptive to his team(or wherever he may find himself) by his nature. I saw the match between Pompey and City at Fratton Park last year and he deliberately stomped the back of Pedro Mendes heel. Barton lost control of the ball and Mendes picked it up then headed up field with Barton in pursuit. Barton caught up with him and looked straight down at Mendes' heel and stomped down on it. A replay caught it all very clearly. The man(????) should have been suspended then and he should be suspended now!!!!