Joey Barton denies trying to get Lincoln's Matt Rhead sent off in Burnley FA Cup tie
Sunday 19 February 2017 07:57, UK
Burnley midfielder Joey Barton has hit back at claims he tried to feign injury in order to get Lincoln City’s Matt Rhead sent off.
The Premier League side were humbled in extraordinary fashion by National League outfit Lincoln, who became the first non-league club to reach the last eight of the FA Cup since Queens Park Rangers in 1914.
Sean Raggett headed past Tom Heaton in the 89th-minute to seal a remarkable 1-0 victory for the Imps at Turf Moor over a side 81 places above them in the football pyramid.
Barton was involved in a flash point during the second half with Rhead, which provoked widespread criticism on social media.
With Lincoln preparing to take a corner, Barton made a nuisance of himself as he attempted to mark Rhead. The midfielder appeared to tread on the Lincoln man's foot, however, Rhead brushed it off and didn't react.
Barton then continued to harass Rhead and seemed to deliberately run into his arm from behind before falling to the ground holding his face like he had been struck by the visiting player.
A clearly frustrated Barton then clashed with Lincoln midfielder, Terry Hawkridge, as the game edged towards full time and received a yellow card for the incident after appearing to slap Hawkridge in the face.
The Burnley midfielder took to Twitter after the match to explain his antics.
Barton's conduct didn't dampen the spirits of the 3,210 travelling Lincoln supporters. whose focus now shifts to Sunday's quarter-final draw.
