Newcastle's Joey Barton has denied questioning the loyalty of the Toon Army after labelling fans as 'vicious'.
I was misrepresented, says outspoken star
Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton insists he never meant to question the loyalty of the club's fans, following his seemingly scathing attack on the St James' Park faithful.
Barton made headlines and angered Magpies fans last week after describing the Toon Army's reaction to the 3-0 home drubbing by Liverpool as 'vicious', but the former Manchester City man says his comments were misinterpreted.
The outspoken 25-year-old is keen to avoid any further backlash when he takes to the turf for Wednesday's crucial clash with Arsenal, and maintains he intended to deliver a 'rallying call'.
"I woke on the morning of the game to see that comments I had made earlier in the week had been presented, in some quarters, in a way they were never meant to be," Barton told the club's official website.
"When I spoke about the atmosphere at our last home game against Liverpool, the point I was making was that, through results good or bad, we all need to stick together on and off the pitch.
Rallying call
"There are a lot of new players at the club still finding their feet and there was a big summer of change at the club with a new manager and owners coming in.
"So it is clear everyone needs time to come together and move the club on - and that will happen much, much quicker if everyone is pulling together.
"Of course I never questioned any fan's loyalty - who could question the loyalty of any Newcastle United fan, or their right to be unhappy if performances are not going well?
"In fact, I actually made the point that it is up to the players to lift the fans when results are not going our way.
"What I said was intended to be a rallying call after a defeat. It was not a blast or an attack."
