Joey Barton's agent has warned Newcastle United that the troubled midfielder will not be pushed out of St James' Park this summer. Alan Shearer has made it clear to Mike Ashley that if he is to become the relegated club's manager full-time, Barton's presence cannot be tolerated and there will be no place for him in his squad.
Newcastle's owner is in full agreement and hopes Barton's £64,000-a-week wages will shortly be removed from the payroll, but Willie McKay suggested that Barton is in no hurry to be moved on and may dig his heels in. "Joey has three years left on his contract at Newcastle," said McKay. "He doesn't want to leave."
Barton spent the latter stages of the season serving an indefinite suspension from the club following a verbal attack on Shearer in the dressing room after his sending off in a defeat against Liverpool.
Ashley is believed to have taken legal advice on the possibilities of sacking a player whose Tyneside tenure has been scarred by, among other things, a stint in prison, but instead opted to quietly move the player on this summer.
Although Barton – who knows he would not be welcomed back with open arms and could be isolated were he to report for pre-season training on 1 July – would prefer to play Premier League football, he does not want to take a pay cut.
Despite his chequered past, several managers remain enamoured of his undeniable talent and Bolton's Gary Megson and Blackburn's Sam Allardyce, who brought him to Newcastle from Manchester City for £5.8m two years ago, are believed to be weighing up offers. Bolton had a £2m bid for Barton rebuffed by Joe Kinnear in January, but Newcastle would happily accept the same sum now to be rid of him and his costly remuneration.
Megson and Allardyce could, however, face competition from Harry Redknapp. It is understood Tottenham have made an inquiry about Barton. Yet, asked about his client possibly transferring to Bolton, Blackburn or Spurs, Mckay said: "No, no, no, there's nothing doing – Joey has a three-year contract left at Newcastle."
Meanwhile, Newcastle fans are becoming anxious that after four days of negotiations with Ashley, Shearer has still not signed a managerial contract. Club sources, though, remain optimistic that an announcement could be "imminent" and emphasise the legal complexities involved in drafting such agreements.
Ashley's financial advisors have had to check that all Shearer's demands make business sense.
