Bristol Rovers boss Joey Barton goes off on one in a rather damning assessment of Crystal Palace U21s after beating them on Tuesday.
The outspoken manager said he wouldn’t take any of the Premier League outfit’s young players after his side won 2-0 in the Papa John’s Trophy.
Recent signing Syl Jasper came close to scoring in the 28th minute, but Palace goalkeeper Whitworth pulled off a sensational save from close range.
Rovers did break the deadlock as the first-half came to an end with Coutts sending in a corner, meeting Alfie Kilgour who rose highest to put his a header in from ten yards.
The hoss made it 2-0 in the 73rd minute when Trevor Clarke cut inside and fired home with his right-foot from the edge of the box.
Despite the win, there was a sense of frustration from Joey Barton about how he viewed the opposition.
Three of their players were shown yellow cards, including a foul from Kofi Balmer, which later led to a scuffle that resulted in Glen Whelan being shown a red card.
“It’s disappointing because we’ve lost a man in that kind of melee,” Barton said to BBC Radio Bristol. “I thought they were what is the problem in the modern game. An academy side that are miles away from producing people that can play in the league, they are so far away let’s be honest.
“It makes a mockery of what that Premier League 2 is. You hear me talk about big clubs stockpiling players, we wouldn’t take any of their players. We wouldn’t, they are so far away.
“It’s an opportunity for us to have a look at that because we like to utilise the loan market. It’s easy for them because their games don’t matter.
“Their games are irrelevant, nobody cares about them. We’ve got a proper game on Saturday, mortgages are on the line. Real men’s football.”
📹 Joey Barton on tonight’s victory in the @PapaJohnsTrophy.#BristolRovers pic.twitter.com/JKqwLlvZxh
— Bristol Rovers (@Official_BRFC) October 4, 2022
🎙 “It’s frustrating…”
Joey Barton says they’ll appeal Glenn Whelan’s red card in Rovers 2-0 win against Crystal Palace u-21’s in the EFL Trophy. pic.twitter.com/TxTluvXisT
— BBC Sport Bristol (@bbcbristolsport) October 4, 2022
As well as the win, another positive saw the return of several players, who had recovered from respective injuries.
Josh Coburn was brought on at half time for his debut, a month after he joined from Middlesbrough on Deadline Day. Lewis Gibson, on loan from Everton also came on with permanent signing James Gibbons making his third appearance.
He said: “I thought they were fine, we got the minutes into them that we wanted. I could have done that on the training ground today in a 11v11 on a Tuesday. I don’t need to play a glorified youth team to do that.
“It’s a lot safer if we do it on our training ground and I can get forty-fifty minutes into the lads without absolutely no issue of them getting injured or suspended by a youth team.”
This is what fans said as Bristol Rovers boss Joey Barton goes off on one in a damning assessment of Crystal Palace U21s…
@YesImCornish: I mean I’m a rovers fan but even from the YouTube highlights you can clearly see whelos hands around the kids throat 😂
@jackstacpfc: Good morning to everyone apart from Joey Barton
@cpfcames: Joey Barton has always had an IQ of a fucking donkey
@CPFC_88: Haha sounds like he was a bit upset that our kids roughed them up a bit.
@tomfsw1983: To be honest a lot of what he says is right. So many of the players were miles away last night. However, our best players are on loan or injured and the ones that did impress Raymond, Mooney, Akinwale are still incredibly young.
@bradman1967: Joey Barton very dismissive of U21s football!
@MikeBuckley2: @cpfc #cpfc Joey Barton never liked youth players… just ask the kid who he poked in the eye with a cigar. Offering our an 18 year old in the centre circle immediately after the game. UTP❤️💙
@ZacCPFC: The whole point of this tournament for us is to give the 21s experience, the ones who perhaps aren’t as good yet as some of our other 21s. Joey Barton is a massive prick & the likes of O’Brien/Plange/Jes are better than any of his Bristol Rovers players
@Matchday365CPFC: Joey Barton’s quotes last night are pathetic, laughable & absolutely stupid. Our U21s are top of PL2, we have players on loan across the pyramid & for him to come out & try to dismiss the careers of all our young lads is SO disrespectful & unnecessary.
@IamJexy: Incredibly disrespectful and unprofessional (but what else did we expect from him). Our boys have alot of talent and I hope they pin this quote up as motivation. When I want to read an intelligent point of view, Joey Barton is the last person I’d want to hear from.
@AlessioCPFC: Should focus on not getting them Relegated
@mac_P__: so rattled by our youth side 🤣 what a 🛎
@CpfcDan_: What a nobhead
@CPFCMTHW: A set piece goal and a goal outside of the box and he wants to chat like this. 🥱
Joey Barton writing off the talents of a squad of U21 footballers because of an on-pitch scrap is the absolute height of irony. pic.twitter.com/liTuiFJqhA
— HLTCO (@HLTCO) October 5, 2022
Mike Jones https://t.co/G6At5kRuT6 pic.twitter.com/OazURNYKD8
— No Context Bristol Rovers (@0contextrovers) October 4, 2022
Joey Barton has been slating our U21s so we thought we’d remind you of his biggest contribution to youth development/academy football… 👎#CPFC pic.twitter.com/50CMZR2f7D
— Team Called Palace (@TCPalacePod) October 5, 2022
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