Barton took little time to stoke the fire between the Old Firm foes after joining Mark Warburton’s Glasgow Rangers side.
Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths
Leigh Griffiths has taken a swipe at Rangers midfielder Joey Barton following his comments about Scott Brown by insisting that the Celtic skipper’s record is much more impressive than that of the 33-year-old, Herald Scotland reports.
Barton took little time to get himself involved in the Old Firm feud following his summer move to Ibrox by suggesting that the Hoops stalwart was not in the same league as him.
Joey Barton
But Griffiths has thrown his support behind his captain and claimed that if you look at each of their records, the Gers man has very little to shout about.
“How many caps has Joey got? Just the one for England. And Broony has 50 for Scotland, he’s the captain of his national team, won titles and competed in the Champions League,” he told Herald Scotland.
“It’s up to Barton to say what he wants but look at Broony’s CV. Now look at Joey Barton’s CV and everything he’s done in his career. Compare the two CVs together. I’m pretty sure I know who I would pick.
“Scott has Champions League experience; he’s done it at the very top level of the game, for club and country. If Barton wants to come up here and disrespect him, Broony will take that in his stride.”
Celtic’s Scott Brown
Although Brown has won several more trophies than Barton has during their respective careers, it is difficult to compare them given that they are yet to play in the same division.
However, that is set to change next season when the pair line up against each other in the Scottish Premiership.
And not only will the identity of the team lifting the league crown at the end of the season provide an indication of who the better player actually is, but their direct battles in the Old Firm games will also help provide a definitive answer.
After Andy Halliday’s personal victory over an out-of-sorts Brown in the Scottish Cup semi-final last season arguably played a major role in helping the Light Blues win the game on penalties, both Barton and the Bhoys captain will know that their battle in the middle of the park could have a crucial say in who gets the bragging rights in the city following their meetings.
And while many will be backing Barton to get the better of Brown, Griffiths has no doubt that his teammate will be the one who comes out on top.
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