BARTON SUSPENSION CONTINUES: Joey Barton ‘D-Day’ received almost as much media hype as Sky Sports’ ‘Red Monday’ last week – and was even more of a letdown.
The ongoing saga rumbles on, with the outcome of widely anticipated talks between Barton and the club being simply a continuation of the suspension. As we were then. The farcical management of the whole fiasco does nothing to help Rangers or manager Mark Warburton, who must be even more fed up of hearing about the story as we all are.
In case you’ve been living under a rock (or Jim Traynor’s been covering your eyes every time you go to look up the story), Joey Barton has been suspended since a dressing room bust-up in the aftermath of the 5-1 humiliation in the first derby against Celtic. Oh, and there was also the breach of betting regulations – what a signing he has turned out to be.
Same time next week folks!
BURKE A PERFECT TEN: Scotland winger Oliver Burke’s future will lie more centrally, according to RB Leipzig coach Ralph Hasenhuttl. The talented youngster has already scored once in his four appearances since moving to Germany and his new side Leipzig have been the surprise package – currently sitting second in their first season in the top flight.
Hasenhuttl said: “Oliver is getting better, he is tactically more mature. He learns very quickly and is eventually the ‘Ten Option’.”
Burke started Scotland’s games against Malta and Lithuania but was surprisingly absent from the disastrous 3-0 defeat in Slovakia.
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WARBURTON DENIES WIGAN LINK: Rangers boss Mark Warburton has rubbished reports linking him with a move to the vacant manager’s job at Wigan in the English Championship, saying he is “bemused” by the links. Warburton had success in the division with Brentford before moving to Rangers.
Former Scotland defender Gary Caldwell was harshly sacked by the Latics this week after guiding them to promotion last season and being named the LMA League 1 Manager of the Year. Who’d be a manager?
UNDER-19s SEAL ELITE PLACE: Scotland’s Under-19 side have secured their place in the Elite Round of the European Championship after a 1-0 win over Andorra. Everton’s Fraser Hornby scored the only goal of the game, to cap a good few weeks for the youngsters who beat Liechtenstein earlier this week and also defeated a talented Sweden side at the Oriam earlier this month.
#NoWordsNeeded
THEY SAID…
“It was the same old, same old story and not a good enough performance.
“When we lost that first goal we looked a bit fragile. That has to change. We are in trouble. The points tally isn’t enough and we are in a battle.” (Paul Hartley admits his side are struggling at the foot of the Premiership table)
“We didn’t play well at all. When we conceded the first goal we started to disintegrate. The spirit went out of us, we became fragmented and that unity that we have even when we lose a goal wasn’t there.
“So that was a worry and a disappointment. Until the goal it was fairly neck and neck but the second half was the most disappointing 45 minutes I’ve had since I’ve been back at the club.” (Mark McGhee also didn’t hold back in his assessment of Motherwell’s 3-0 loss to Inverness Caley Thistle)
And finally, as we bid farewell to Vine…here’s a throwback to simpler times for struggling Sunderland manager David ‘Moyesy’ Moyes.
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