Joey Barton attacked outside Liverpool nightclub

June 4th, 2012 → 11:10 am @ carbon

By
Rob Preece

PUBLISHED:

11:19, 4 June 2012

|

UPDATED:

11:47, 4 June 2012

Premier League footballer Joey Barton has been punched in the face outside a nightclub.

The controversial Queens Park Rangers midfielder was involved in a fight with two men outside Garlands, a nightclub in Liverpool city centre.

A picture of the incident, apparently showing a shirtless Barton being held back by police and a woman, appeared on Twitter.

Fracas: A picture of the incident, apparently showing a shirtless Barton being held back by police and a woman, appeared on Twitter

But the footballer, a prolific tweeter himself with more than 1.5million followers, has made no mention of the incident on the micro-blogging website.

He last used the website yesterday, posting comments about the medals worn by the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

He tweeted: ‘How have Prince Charles and Philip got that many medals? Can’t remember reading about their heroism anywhere… #mystery’.

In another post, he wrote: ‘I don’t mind The Queen. She seems alright. William seems sound as does Harry. The rest, well, they just annoy me…’

A Merseyside Police spokeswoman said: ‘Merseyside Police were called to Eberle Street in Liverpool city centre at 5.30am this morning following reports of an altercation.

Controversial: Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton was involved in a fight with two men outside a nightclub

‘On arrival officers found a 29-year-old man who had sustained injuries to his face. The man left the scene voluntarily.

‘Two 21-year-old men from the L13 area were arrested at the scene for a public order offence.

‘They are currently in police custody.’

Ian Taylor, a spokesman for QPR, said: ‘Joey Barton was involved in an incident in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of Monday morning.

‘Barton was on his way home from a night out with his girlfriend when two men sang offensive chants and then proceeded to hit the R’s midfielder.

‘Police were immediately on the scene and arrested one man.

‘Barton decided not to press charges and left the scene with his girlfriend soon after.

‘The club will be making no further comment.’

News of the fight was widely commented on on Twitter, with the words Joey Barton and Garlands trending on the social media site.

@JoshGore-11, who claimed to have been at the scene, said Barton had ‘looked in a bad way’ after the fight.

The Liverpool-born footballer has a long history of controversy on and off the pitch and has become well-known for his opinionated tweets.

It is the latest of a long list of incidents involving the midfielder who was hit with a 12 game ban by the Football Association following his sending off on the final day of the season at Manchester City.

The club: Garlands where Joey Barton’s alleged altercation took place

He was banned for the sending off and then for kicking out and Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero and attempting to head-butt Vincent Kompany.

Barton has never been far from trouble in his career and was jailed for six months in May 2008 after admitting common assault and affray following an incident in Liverpool city centre the December before.

He was also fined around £60,000 while at Manchester City after he stubbed a lit cigar into the eye of his young team-mate Jamie Tandy during the club’s Christmas party.

Barton was also suspended by City for after a training-ground altercation with team-mate Ousmane Dabo.

He was charged with violent conduct by FA and received a four-month suspended sentence at Manchester Crown court.