Not sure if were still interested but from his press conference just shown on skysportsnews he seems like he's off at the end of his contract with no desire to sign at Brighton.

I saw it earlier today, gave the distinct impression he just wanted to play Premier League football and wasn't fussed whether it was Brighton or not. I don't know whether we still have an interest but I think he'll move on one in the summer.

I can see us being very interested if he's on a free. Even though we appear to have enough bodies in midfield now there are question marks over Marney and Defour's long term fitness, plus as good as Joey is he's not getting any younger!

Haven't seen the press conference referred to but he sounds like an absolute knob and I wouldn't touch him with a barge pole.

I don't know enough about the lad to be honest but if we do stay up we will need to invest in a Joey, MK2, no disrespect to Joey but the new version will require similar qualities, vision etc but a little more pace. Would Stephens fulfill that requirement?

beddie wrote:I don't know enough about the lad to be honest but if we do stay up we will need to invest in a Joey, MK2, no disrespect to Joey but the new version will require similar qualities, vision etc but a little more pace. Would Stephens fulfill that requirement?

I would hope, once our place in this division is certain for next season, the first thing we do is get Joey Barton signing a new contract.

Agree with that completely, Tony. I do think we need to be thinking ahead as well though. I'm not sure Stephens is the answer mind and he's definitely not if the worse came to the worse and we lost Defour.

I would be very surprised if we didn't try to go in for him based on the fact he's been one of the best midfielders in the Championship in the last few years. A lot will depend on if we finally have a better scouting network in place. I watch far too much football and there are players way better than Stephens playing in France and Spain in small teams.

And yes, ban dependent Joey should be having another years contract drawn up as we speak, he's been immense.

He's similar to Westwood in terms of his passing ability and vision on the ball but a key difference is his ability to get on the end of a set piece especially at the back post.

I agree completely that we should try and get Joey to sign another contract but long term and if we stay up we have to bring in a MK2 , its a long season.

We have to think about the future. That most likely means (imho) that marney, due to the seriousness of the injury, and his age, could well be finished at this level. Defour might not want to stay if he's not a regular starter, and due to the way we play, that's a real possibility. Barton is a must keep but he's no spring chicken, and to be ruthlessly honest, if this is where we want to stay, arfield probably shouldn't be starting at this level next season. So we need to plan ahead, like we have done with acquiring the services of tarka. I'd be happy to see Stephens here. No brainer really considering we only have to worry about wages.

It depends if we're in Europe or not.

Definitely for me if we are, and definitely for me if we're not...

Having read Joey's book last month, he says that he was studying for the final part of his UEFA licence. Wouldn't be surprised if he joins our backroom staff at some point.

The only thing he seems sure of is that he wants to play in the premier league. He put in a transfer request the last day of the transfer window (????), but seems to be hedging his bets for either Burnley or BHA. BHA have a good chance to get promoted, but will be interesting if he would chose us (if we stay up), over BHA.
I have to admit that I was wrong with Barton being able to play in the PL - these last few games he has been fantastic. However, with both his age and the FA charges, I would be surprised if he plays more than a couple more games for us.

AshevilleNCClaret wrote:The only thing he seems sure of is that he wants to play in the premier league. He put in a transfer request the last day of the transfer window (????), but seems to be hedging his bets for either Burnley or BHA. BHA have a good chance to get promoted, but will be interesting if he would chose us (if we stay up), over BHA.
I have to admit that I was wrong with Barton being able to play in the PL - these last few games he has been fantastic. However, with both his age and the FA charges, I would be surprised if he plays more than a couple more games for us.

Why?

AshevilleNCClaret wrote: I have to admit that I was wrong with Barton being able to play in the PL - these last few games he has been fantastic. However, with both his age and the FA charges, I would be surprised if he plays more than a couple more games for us.

Hey???

What we neec in midfield now is a gpalscorer. All can weigh in but we need a player who can bag us 7 to 10 goals from midfield.

Maybe Hendrick can be that physical, dominant midfielder. Dont think we need any more like Stephens though.

Holtyclaret wrote:Hey???

Got a gut feeling that the FA are going to bring the hammer down on Barton and give him a long suspension. Not sure if he deserves it, but a gut feeling.

And after that suspension, he'll be 35/36, not having played competively for many months, trying to play in the PL.

AshevilleNCClaret wrote:Got a gut feeling that the FA are going to bring the hammer down on Barton and give him a long suspension. Not sure if he deserves it, but a gut feeling.

And after that suspension, he'll be 35/36, not having played competively for many months, trying to play in the PL.

to be fair playing in Scotland is equivalent to not having played competitively. Won't be any different to when we signed him in Feb.

He'll still be able to train surely if he's banned?

He hadn't played in the Premier League 'for many months' and look at him now! Of course Barton brings more then his footballing ability - his character is also very important.

At the moment we have a couple of players we don't yet know how they will develop (Westwood, Brady), another who is still developing but looks promising (Hendrick), one who we are not sure about physically but has ability (Defour), one out for a year with a question of his recovery (Marney), and Arfield and Boyd where we know what we have.

By the end of the season we will have a better idea on most of this and therefore a better knowledge of who we should target.

I thought Stephens wanted to move up north that's why we were interested in the first place and that's why he wont sign a new contract at bha

I don't think we could replace Joey,he has been brilliant,since his return. He simply runs the show in our midfield,tackling,passing,talking. Can't fault his attitude. SD seems to get the best out of him.UTC.

sign him on. cover for barton next year

No brainer for me , good all round midfielder who can make the step up just like hendrick sign him on

Claretmatt4 wrote:He'll still be able to train surely if he's banned?

I do believe any formal ban will come complete with shackles for his ankles, so no.

"and to be ruthlessly honest, if this is where we want to stay, arfield probably shouldn't be starting at this level next season".

Arfield may not be the most technically gifted or quickest of players, but he's been an integral part of our team & squad. He also has 59 premier league appearances to his name which is a hell of a lot for someone who doesn't belong at this level. I think he epitomises what our team is about and when he's named in the first team I never sigh or worry because with Scotty, I know exactly what we're going to get.

Joey is crucial for me. Getting him signed for next season should be the first bit of business we do. We'd find it extremely hard to replace wgat he brings. Im struggling to think of anyone else id rather have. Stephens would be a good addition. The thing with getting the likes of Hendrik, Stephens is that they have huge hunger fir the Premier League. They've played in the lower leagues, know what real graft is. Put in a shift. Have points to prove. Prove to themselves that they're good enough.

Sleeping Cat wrote:"and to be ruthlessly honest, if this is where we want to stay, arfield probably shouldn't be starting at this level next season".

Arfield may not be the most technically gifted or quickest of players, but he's been an integral part of our team & squad. He also has 59 premier league appearances to his name which is a hell of a lot for someone who doesn't belong at this level. I think he epitomises what our team is about and when he's named in the first team I never sigh or worry because with Scotty, I know exactly what we're going to get.

I like Scotty and if he never plays another minute for us he will be rightly regarded as a legend and someone who helped us make the biggest of all step ups.

But he is not good enough to play as a starter for a team in the Prem that doesn't have relegation worries, which is why he is no longer a regular starter for us when everyone is fit. That is not to say he doesn't have a part to play and he is as reliable as they come. So he is now the very definition of a squad player.

Dyched wrote:Joey is crucial for me. Getting him signed for next season should be the first bit of business we do. We'd find it extremely hard to replace wgat he brings. Im struggling to think of anyone else id rather have. Stephens would be a good addition. The thing with getting the likes of Hendrik, Stephens is that they have huge hunger fir the Premier League. They've played in the lower leagues, know what real graft is. Put in a shift. Have points to prove. Prove to themselves that they're good enough.

I'll join you at the front of the queue with that one. I couldn't understand, given what he gave us last season, that there was some negativity when it looked as if he might come back. If he never played another game for us his return has already been a success.

ClaretTony wrote:I'll join you at the front of the queue with that one. I couldn't understand, given what he gave us last season, that there was some negativity when it looked as if he might come back. If he never played another game for us his return has already been a success.

I had reservations about bringing him back but not because of football reasons. It was a loss to see him sign for Rangers and I was concerned there may have been bad blood upon his return.

His performances have allayed those reservations entirely but that's not to say they were not without justification.

Joey's contribution last season alone was enough to cement his place in Burnley folklore.

ClaretTony wrote:I'll join you at the front of the queue with that one. I couldn't understand, given what he gave us last season, that there was some negativity when it looked as if he might come back. If he never played another game for us his return has already been a success.

I was one who wouldn't of gone near him after his poor performances for Rangers. He has been fantastic for us on his return but I'm still scratching my head how you can be so poor against lesser teams and then improve 10 fold against International players?

If Stephens is available on a free then it's a no brainer to sign him up if wages are reasonable.

I`m with Rowls here - perfectly reasonable and understanding to have reservations about Joey`s return.

Nobody knew Joey`s frame of mind or his fitness levels - or the impact of what must have been a very stressful time. His time in Rangers and what happened was a failure and clearly not what Joey had planned for the final stages of his career. Put all the betting stuff on top with what could be a career ending ban hanging over his head and this must be at the very least a very strange time for him.

Putting all that to one side there must have also been reservations from a lot of fans that even a fit Joey would be able to cope with the quality and pace of the Premier League. When you look at his career and even when he was at his peak age he has rarely (if ever) operated at the level he has done in the last few games....not sure how any fan in truth could have fully expected him to come back and do what he has done.

It`s been a fantastic surprise and bonus to have Barton back and playing as exceptional as he has been. Personally I doubt even Dyche expected this level of performance so not sure how any one could have no reservations that he could cope let alone put in MOM performances.

Clearly he has found his "happy place" !

AshevilleNCClaret wrote:Got a gut feeling that the FA are going to bring the hammer down on Barton and give him a long suspension. Not sure if he deserves it, but a gut feeling.

And after that suspension, he'll be 35/36, not having played competively for many months, trying to play in the PL.

Still younger than Alexander was when he played for us at this level and with much more experience.

cricketfieldclarets wrote:What we neec in midfield now is a gpalscorer. All can weigh in but we need a player who can bag us 7 to 10 goals from midfield.

Maybe Hendrick can be that physical, dominant midfielder. Dont think we need any more like Stephens though.

It could take serious money to get a goal scoring midfielder that gets 7-10 a season looking at this list. https://www.premierleague.com/stats/top ... oals?se=54" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The vast majority at the top will be playing as a 2nd striker or CAM in a 5 man midfield. All our midfielders have one goal each apart from Hendrick who has two.
Stephens has a far better record than what we have already-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Step ... ootballer)

If we keep playing 442 the bulk of the goals have to come from the forwards. 25-30 from the front 3 is needed which they are about half way there.

Quickenthetempo wrote:It could take serious money to get a goal scoring midfielder that gets 7-10 a season looking at this list. https://www.premierleague.com/stats/top ... oals?se=54" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The vast majority at the top will be playing as a 2nd striker or CAM in a 5 man midfield. All our midfielders have one goal each apart from Hendrick who has two.
Stephens has a far better record than what we have already-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Step ... ootballer)

If we keep playing 442 the bulk of the goals have to come from the forwards. 25-30 from the front 3 is needed which they are about half way there.

I know they will cost more. But they are out there. Look at Delle Alli. He came from league one. We need to look at lower leagues and abroad.

Dele Alli, James Morrison, Snodgrass, Sigurdsson, Antonio, Fer all cost less than Hendrick.

Quickenthetempo wrote:I was one who wouldn't of gone near him after his poor performances for Rangers. He has been fantastic for us on his return but I'm still scratching my head how you can be so poor against lesser teams and then improve 10 fold against International players?

Wasn't even playing in his best position for Rangers - don't think Warburton had a clue how to get the best out of him.

ClaretTony wrote:Wasn't even playing in his best position for Rangers - don't think Warburton had a clue how to get the best out of him.

Maybe not but he was still way below his expected level.

Most footballers have to start out or play in a position to suit the team rather than the player.

Maybe he doesn't stand out as much with a side in possession as he does in a team like ours?

Would go in for Stephens if there's a chance he moves on from Brighton, shame we didn't bid for Lansbury (at 3m was a snip) board prob didn't want to deal with Fawaz again which was to be expected!

Quickenthetempo wrote:Maybe not but he was still way below his expected level.

Most footballers have to start out or play in a position to suit the team rather than the player.

Maybe he doesn't stand out as much with a side in possession as he does in a team like ours?

Didn't exactly have a lot of games to show Rangers what he could do, did he?

We've just drawn with, and almost beaten, the Champions Elect. Why would a superior Premier league team like us want to dilute our squad with an average Championship player like him? If he wants to come here, he should be begging us to sign him, a bit like Joey did.

Who cares if he played **** at Rangers
Who cares if he played **** against Dundee or whoevers in that league

He plays for Burnley
He plays in the Premier League
And he's been superb

Quickenthetempo wrote:Maybe not but he was still way below his expected level.

Most footballers have to start out or play in a position to suit the team rather than the player.

Maybe he doesn't stand out as much with a side in possession as he does in a team like ours?

Played very few games and they lost just one of them but from what I saw he was given little opportunity to impress because of the role he was given.

From the minute Rangers decided they couldn't cope with a player having an opinion, I was hoping he'd come back to us. We know what he can do. He did it last time and I was more than confident he would do it again.

I'm amazed that anyone thought Joey coming back to us wasn't a good idea. His fitness was never an issue and a few months away following an ill fated move wasn't going to alter that or dilute his obvious ability and commitment.

Joey was too good for them. Its as simple as that.

Good players play better in better teams. If he was to play for City (again) he would be even better than he is with us.

Lansbury is doing great at Villa...

Quickenthetempo wrote:I was one who wouldn't of gone near him after his poor performances for Rangers. He has been fantastic for us on his return but I'm still scratching my head how you can be so poor against lesser teams and then improve 10 fold against International players?

The players around him make his game so much easier. You could see when we went up there in pre season (when he played centre mid) that he had no chance of being the player that he was for us for Rangers. The passes just weren't on for him like they are now and he was completely exposed.