Joey Barton reveals he doesn’t trust his own player and regrets giving two-year contract

Joey Barton reveals he doesn’t trust his own player and regrets giving the individual a two-year contract back in June 2022.

The controversial manager has delivered a scathing dismissal of defender Trevor Clarke, who along with teammates Zain Westbrooke and Alex Rodman, is currently training away from the first team.

“Unfortunately, we extended his deal and sometimes you’ve got to be very quick to recognise and I hold my hands up,” Barton told BBC Radio Bristol.

“I’ve made a mistake on that one, I shouldn’t have brought him back in.”

Clarke joined the League One outfit from Rotherham United last summer and played seven times for the team as they earned promotion.

The former Shamrock Rovers defender started the first game of the season for the club, a 2-1 defeat to Forest Green. Following that match, however, Barton was critical of the player who probably won’t be plying for them again after that if his comments are anything to go by.

“If you had said to me at the end of last season Zain Westbrooke and Trevor Clarke were going to be in our starting XI on the opening day of the season, I would have said, ‘My god, we must have had a bad summer’.”

The former Manchester City midfielder has told Clarke, 24, that he has no future at the club.

Trevor Clarke appreciation tweet pic.twitter.com/BzOdMk8X5U

— 𝓡𝔂𝓪𝓷𝓷 𝓜𝓲𝓰𝓷𝓪𝓷𝓸 (@Ryann_BRFC_95) August 2, 2022

“He’s a good kid, he just can’t play the position how I want it played,” Barton said.

“For me, he just doesn’t fill me with trust going forward. If I’m honest, I don’t trust him. I don’t think he’s the right component for us. We want to pass out, we want to play, and he’s not that type of full-back.”

“I’ve been telling Trev all summer ‘I don’t trust you,” Barton continued.

“You’re doing stuff in training, you’re not doing what I’m asking you to do, your retention of information I’m struggling with because how many times am I going to show you?’

“He’s not 17 or 19, he’s 24. So, at some point, the penny has got to drop. And after doing a year’s worth of work with him last year, I just got to the point where we need to pull up stumps here and just draw a line under it.

“It’s not fair on him because he had a similar theme at Rotherham where he’s not played minutes. He’s had a similar theme here, where he has not played minutes.”

🎙️ “I’ve got to clear the decks…”

Rovers manager Joey Barton talks about his decision to tell Trevor Clarke, Zain Westbrooke and Alex Rodman that they can leave the club. pic.twitter.com/QXF3hfiPI6

— BBC Sport Bristol (@bbcbristolsport) August 4, 2022

The Bristol Rovers boss went on to say that Clarke is free to leave the club and he spoke about a potential return to the League of Ireland for the defender.

“His family is in Ireland and he could probably play in the League of Ireland, he’s probably got enough ability to play there,” Barton said.

“He might get another opportunity in England, I don’t know. But putting someone in the team like Westy and Trev, who you don’t trust, is not fair on them.

“We have to put them in because we’re light on bodies and they also know that you don’t trust them and they also know that their fans don’t trust them.”

As if he hadn’t made it clear enough, Barton added that he regrets giving Clarke a new contract and that the player has no future at the club.

“Unfortunately, we extended his deal and sometimes you’ve got to be very quick to recognise and I hold my hands up. I’ve made a mistake on that one, I shouldn’t have brought him back in.

“If I had my time again, I wouldn’t have done that, but we have and we’ve got to find a solution, firstly for Trev and, obviously, for the club. I don’t think he’ll have a problem. I think there will be many suitors for him.

“He’s obviously done well in the League of Ireland and he could pop back out there, but that will be somebody else’s problem and he won’t go forward with us.”

Fans reacted as Joey Barton reveals he doesn’t trust his own player and regrets giving him a two-year contract…

@CathalWarfield: @Joey7Barton a disgrace of a manager….. the way in which he spoke about Trevor Clarke after giving him a 2 year contract is shocking. A joke of a guy……

@RyanNafc: Sligo should try for Trevor Clarke. Save him from that scumbag, they’ll probably accept anything atm

@lukednixon: Joey Barton has absolutely hatcheted Trevor Clarke here, completely unnecessary.

@iampgreene: The worst bit there is how he repeatedly attempts to dress it up like this is in the best interest of the player and then absolutely bodies him in the next sentence. As for wondering will a penny ever drop with a player as he gets older, he should know better than most…

@GM_Pod: Should never have been given a contract, injured and suspended most the time for BR. Best thing for him is to get back to Rovers, very talented lad and just needs to get settled.

@NiallFarrell218: Belittling the player & the LOI while he’s at it “he could probably play in the League of Ireland, he’s probably got enough ability to play there”. Doubt too many lowly League 1 sides would be winning in Sofia, beating Motherwell or on verge of qualifying for a group stage.

@Gerry_Desmond: Unprofessional comments from @Joey7Barton there, why not keep such comments in-house?

@sobrickaay: Board should step in here. Barton might behave himself through periods but he’ll always reveal his true colours given long enough. He can’t help it. And regardless of the player’s popularity I doubt if the squad will appreciate their manager attacking another player like this.

@dfagan123: To be fair to Barton he should be an expert on “the penny not dropping”! It’s never dropped for him. Just can’t help himself. Only matter of time before he does something that’ll make “the penny drop” for those in charge at Bristol Rovers

@Garts111: Man management at its finest. Distraction as to how poor a job Joey is doing, throw someone under a bus. Horrible way to treat anyone @Joey7Barton

@clinicaldave: Where are the @PFA in all this?

@Yorkiesaint: Not the first time he’s done it either, had a loan player from Barnsley who had publicised mental health issues and Joey went public on him and his performance, shameful. Lad is back with Barnsley and playing well, hope he gets a hat trick when they play Rovers.

@statopaul: @Joey7Barton Your treatment of Trevor Clarke is disgusting. Mind you , you didn’t have any talent yourself . But I guess you aren’t the sharpest tool in the box !!

@Decks84: The levels of Barton will never cease to amaze me! This is a shocking interview…

@logical_conor: Horrible interview. Barton is classless.

@NFeirteir: Barton is one of the most unlikeable characters to ever play the game. How a man like him was chosen to manage and lead a club speaks volumes of the clubs attitude to the culture in a club if they see this man as the head of the team.

@Ford4Caz: Seems strange with Clarke but always important to remember we know so little of what goes on. I think Joey made enough good decisions last year that we should trust him on this one.

@FerntreeBernie: They clearly had a bust up. I 100% Barton. I won’t moan about losing a player who’s had 2 good games in 1 year. Not a big loss. In Barton we trust, he’s earned it.

@darrell_ben: Trevor Clarke being told to leave is poor in my opinion, best player on the pitch Saturday with no backup options apart injury prone Josh Grant, massive 3 weeks ahead.

@Gary_Cool: Now its official, I just cant get my head around the trevor clarke situation. Solid left back who’s finally fit, new deal, then binning him off after 1 game of the new season….utterly bizarre. Wouldnt blame trev sitting on his contract tbf