Fleetwood Town beat Liverpool Under-21’s on penalties last night in the EFL Trophy at Highbury but controversial boss Joey Barton was far from happy.
Speaking to the club’s official website after the match Barton criticised both the tournament and the EFL, asking what was the point of the game in which he made eleven changes to the side which beat Rochdale in League One on Saturday?
Barton was not happy at another fixture in a busy schedule and called out the EFL for placing restrictions on his team selection, saying the only benefit of the match was to the Liverpool youngsters.
After losing their controversial opening game in the competition at Accrington Stanley, which Barton described as ‘a debacle’, the Cod Army secured the victory thanks to Matt Gilks’ two penalty saves in the shoot-out following a 1-1 draw.
However, a downbeat Barton was quick to shift the focus back onto League One matters, and the Cod Army’s trip to Shrewsbury on Saturday, thankful his squad had not picked up any injuries or suspensions.
Our View
Barton is right to point out the issues with the competition, and while I am no fans of his, I have to agree with him on this one and applaud him for going public with his concerns.
The arguments over the merits of the EFL Trophy are well documented, but one thing is visible, it appears EFL clubs are reluctant to criticise it due in no small part to the money on offer from the Premier League to sweeten the prospect of their ‘age-group’ sides playing in the competition.
While there is a place for a tournament that gives sides in the lower leagues a realistic chance of a day out at Wembley, s serious overhaul of its format is required for it to flourish.
Until such time, fans will continue to boycott the games in their numbers, and manager’s like Barton will continue to shuffle their pack for games they perceive as meaningless.
