Mark Warburton has signed nine players for Ibrox side Glasgow Rangers this summer, but could Joey Barton be the best of the bunch?
Writing in The Sunday Post, former Rangers midfielder Gordon Smith believes that Joey Barton will be the Gers’ most important player this season as their long-awaited Scottish Premiership return edges nearer.
The 33-year-old signed a two-year deal with Rangers this summer after helping Burnley win promotion to the Premier League.
Barton was so instrumental for the Clarets last season that he would have been almost guaranteed to start regularly in England’s top flight.
But he elected to join up with Mark Warburton and Rangers instead for what could prove to be either an inspired decision by the former Newcastle United man – or a terrible one.
The outspoken Barton has wasted no time in the verbal jousting stakes by taking aim at Rangers’ Old Firm rivals Celtic already – first by suggesting he’s a much better player than Hoops captain Scott Brown, before then questioning Brendan Rodgers as a manager.
Indeed, Barton is certainly a thorn in the side of many off the pitch, but Smith, who spent three years at Ibrox until 1980, says that the Liverpudlian will definitely make the right kind of headlines during his stay in Glasgow.
“It has to be Joey Barton. At 33, he has a wealth of experience at the top level, and while Scotland is a new environment for him, he should prosper,” he wrote in the Sunday Post.
“He also has leadership qualities, and if he plays half as well as he has talked since signing for Rangers, he’ll light up the Premiership.”
Rangers fans showed exactly what they think of Barton after the veteran was given a rousing reception for his debut in Tuesday’s 2-0 win over Annan at Ibrox.
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