All Football Players: Joey Barton Best England Football Player

Thursday, 22 December 2011

Joey Barton Best England Football Player

Squad No: 17
Position: Midfielder
Age: 29
Birth Date: Sep 2, 1982
Birth Place: England
Height: 1.75m
Weight: 70 kg

Barton represented the England U21 and was part of the squad for their 2004 European Under-21 Championship qualifiers against Macedonia and Portugal, scoring once against Portugal.
Following impressive form at club level, Barton received his first call-up to the full England squad on 2 February 2007 for a friendly match against Spain, despite his recent criticism of certain members of the England squad for releasing autobiographies after an unimpressive 2006 World Cup. He had suggested such players had "cashed in" on the national team's lack of success.
Barton later received support over his comments and Steven Gerrard, one of the players whom Barton had criticised, praised him for his honesty. However, Frank Lampard, who had also released an autobiography following the tournament, publicly stated his disapproval. Barton made his international debut on 7 February 2007, replacing Lampard in the 78th minute of the 0–1 defeat to Spain at Old Trafford. with a game based on tackling and tracking back to shield the defence. As his career has progressed, he has begun to incorporate a more attacking approach to his play, which has resulted in a greater number of goals and assists, and he was Manchester City's leading scorer in 2006–07, despite not playing as a striker.
Barton has been described as having a good work ethic and the ability to carry the ball and retain possession for the team. He has been praised for having a good passing range. This aspect of his game has shown improvement since the 2005–06 season, when he began to favour simpler passes over more ambitious ones, and his relatively high pass completion rate can be attributed to this change. Barton's passes have often proved to be crucial; in the past he has led the way in his team's assists.
Barton has been described as the dirtiest player in the premiership, a style reflected in the high number of fouls he has committed during his career. He received 39 bookings and three red cards during his time at Manchester City. This physical approach was occasionally criticised by Kevin Keegan as excessive. Opta statistics rated Barton as the tenth best tackler in the Premier League for the 2004–05 season.