10 Newcastle Players Who Turned Around A Bad Start

4. Joey Barton

When your own supporters are calling for you to be sacked, it's fair to suggest that you haven't exactly ingratiated yourself at your new club. Upon his arrival in June 2007 for £5.5 million, Joey Barton found it difficult to endear himself to a sceptical Geordie public, following the manner of Manchester City exit. Having been essentially exiled from the club following a savage assault on team-mate Ousmane Dabo, he arrived at St. James' Park under an acrimonious cloud, labelled as the archetypal 'bad boy' in the British media. With certain sections of the Toon public expressing their dismay his signing, Barton had to wait until October to make his Newcastle bow following a metarsal injury sustained in pre-season. Upon his return, he found himself at the centre of a media storm once more, following a dangerous lunge on Dickson Etuhu in the Tyne-Wear derby, with the News of the World running the headline 'Ban Him'. In December, the Croxteth-born midfielder was arrested in Liverpool and charged with assault. CCTV camera had captured the incident, in which Barton punched a man twenty times, causing him to lose consciousness, before attacking a teenager. In May, he was sentenced to six months in jail, of which he served 77 days. Unimpressed, the club seriously considered terminating his contract. The following season, he received a six-game ban for his altercation with Dabo at Manchester City, and further injuries restricted the troubled maverick to just nine appearances for the club, as they spiralled towards the Championship. In a crunch fixture at Anfield, Barton drew the wrath of boss Alan Shearer for a 'cowardly' lunge at Xabi Alonso, resulting in a season-ending red card. The Championship, however, served as a chapter of rejuvenation for the former convict. While injuries once again restricted him to just 15 appearances, his passionate and vibrant displays slowly endeared himself to the Tyneside faithful, before establishing himself as a fan favourite the following season. Adopting a position on the right-hand side of midfield, Barton featured in 32 Premier League games, and his hard-working, vibrant displays epitomised the never-say-die attitude implemented by Chris Hughton. Indeed, when Mike Ashley found that he had enough of Joey Barton's sizeable ego at the club, there was an empty feeling of disappointment emanating around the ground in his absence. Now who would have ever thought that when they were baying for blood following his court convictions?