'Only exception is with Rangers' - Joey Barton makes Hibs, Aberdeen or Hearts claim to ram it down Old Firm

Joey Barton is keen to prove himself in Scotland after his failed time at Rangers which has left him viewed as a flop – meaning a possible stint as manager of Aberdeen, Hearts or Hibs.

The former Manchester City midfielder moved to Ibrox from Burnley in the summer of 2016 to play for Mark Warburton. However, he featured just eight times and would leave in November after falling out with the manager. He has since claimed the club would have won their 55th Premiership if they stuck with him rather than Warburton. And now Barton, who currently manages Bristol Rovers, feels he may have to return to Scotland as a manager to “ram it down the Old Firm’s throats” with Rangers the “only exception” to a successful career at his various clubs.

“My time at Ibrox is the only black mark I’ve got in my copybook as a player,” he told the Scottish Sun. “I can’t count myself successful as a Rangers player because I fell out with the manager there and wasn’t allowed enough time to prove myself. If the powers-that-be had got rid of Warburton and stuck by me, they would have won their 55th title a lot sooner than they did under Steven Gerrard.”

He added: “Every time I read a Scottish paper it’s a case of ‘Flop Barton’. It’s the only blot on my copybook as a player. Maybe there’s only one thing for it and that means I’ll have to go back to Scotland and take charge of Hibs, Aberdeen or Hearts — and ram it down the Old Firm’s throats.”