Bristol Rovers boss Joey Barton has been sacked, the club have officially announced, after his side have won just once in their last five outings in League One.
The news was first reported by talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook who revealed that Barton had been dismissed from his position but this has since been confirmed by Bristol Rovers.
An official club statement by Rovers read:
“Bristol Rovers Football Club can confirm that today the club has relieved First Team Manager Joey Barton of his duties.
“Everyone at the club would like to thank Joey for all his efforts and wish him well in the future.”
The club also stated that Andy Mangan will take charge of the side as the interim head coach, supported by Glenn Whelan, Danny Ventre and Anssi Jaakkola.
With merely 13 games played, the Gas are sitting 16th in England’s third tier and a 1-1 draw at the Memorial Stadium on Saturday to Steve Evans’ Stevenage extended the side’s winless run to three games.
Performances on the pitch have been lacklustre at times while Barton has also publicly criticised members of his team, most infamously Luke Thomas for pulling up with a hamstring problem in the build-up to Peterborough United’s second goal during a 2-0 loss for Rovers back in September.
Speaking after the game, the former Queens Park Rangers midfielder said:
“One idiotic young boy [Thomas] – I can’t even call him a man – has compromised the team with his behavioural standards and we find ourselves 2-0 down with a mountain to climb.
“Unless we man up – and I know you have to be careful saying that in the modern era – and absolutely eradicate these weak, feeble-minded individuals that are currently inside our unit, we won’t get promoted out of this division.”
Bristol Rovers’ hopes of promotion to the Championship have been dashed in recent weeks and Barton’s men had found themselves 12 points off the automatic promotion places under his tutelage. Now, Barton has paid the ultimate price.
Writer’s View
This news may not come as a surprise to many Bristol Rovers fans. Managers cannot publicly insult players, as he did with Thomas, and expect a positive response.
Ultimately, results on the pitch have not been good enough but it will be interesting to see who succeeds the ex-Manchester City man.
Deputy Head of Writing
