Joey Barton says he could have caused trouble at QPR to force move to Marseille
By Patrick Haond
Joey Barton has revealed he could have "caused problems" at Queens Park Rangers in a bid to secure a move to Marseille.
Blocked
Barton admits he could understand Marseille's reluctance to pay a fee for him due to his age after QPR chairman Fernandes refused to let him leave on a free transfer.
"Why didn't I stay? It was complex," added Barton.
"At first I was optimistic. I had a big problem with the former QPR manager [Mark Hughes] before leaving for Marseille and when I came back in the summer, the situation was very difficult.
"The club had just been relegated and had to sell players. So I was confident. I told myself: 'I will work during training-sessions, remaining discreet and in the end I will leave to go back to Marseille and it will be fine'.
"We had an agreement with l'OM. I talked to Harry Redknapp too. He told me he understood why I wanted to leave and he would not prevent me. But then, the QPR chairman refused to let me leave as free agent.
"He asked Marseille to pay a transfer fee and it was not possible. The agreement I had with l'OM was I had to be free agent.
"I can understand why l'OM didn't pay to sign me. I am 31-years-old, not so young, I have good wages, so paying a fee for an old player like me, it was too much. "