The FA have slapped Joey Barton with a three-match stadium ban and fined him £3,000 for his behaviour towards a referee.
The Bristol Rovers manager lost his cool with ref Joshua Smith when his Bristol Rovers side faced Sheffield Wednesday in League One last month, losing 2-1. Barton, 40, was sent off and has now been found guilty of three misconduct breaches by FA officials.
Rovers have confirmed to Bristol Live that they will appeal the decision which is set to see Barton miss their first three matches of the 2023-24 season. The FA have not revealed any specific details as to what constituted the three breaches of misconduct but the ex-Manchester City and Newcastle midfielder's latest misdemeanour played out in front of spectators at the Memorial Stadium.
In the 85th minute, Barton was shown a red card after protesting towards the officials following a hotly-debated decision to disallow forward John Marquis' goal. His strike would have been an equaliser but was ruled out for offside, a decision which Barton was adamant was incorrect.
During his post-match press conference, the 40-year-old let rip at ref Smith, labelling him an "amateur of the game." "That second goal is key," Barton bemoaned. "It's a legitimate goal and the amateurs in the professional game have struck again. You try and speak to him just to get him to admit he has made a mistake, but they are like traffic wardens, referees. You can't speak to them.
"It's frustrating when that throws the game, but we've got to be better and not be 2-0 down at half time and get ourselves in the ascendancy. I'm not going to bleat on about the referee much more, but it is frustrating when you have got one job to do as a linesman and you can't even do that correctly.
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"It's very frustrating with the officials because they are a law unto themselves and you've got to be careful what you say because they'll be trying to fine you and get more moments in front of the disciplinary commission, which I’ve had enough of in my history and I don't want any more of."
The FA said in their statement: "The manager admitted that his behaviour after being sent off was improper; and that he subsequently used abusive, insulting and improper words towards a match official in both the tunnel and the match officials' changing room.
"An Independent Regulatory Commission imposed his sanctions following a hearing and its written reasons will be published in due course. The three match ground ban will apply to first-team competitive fixtures next season."
