Queen's Park Rangers face a bill of up to £11 million if they decide to sack Joey Barton after he was handed a 12-match ban by the Football Association.
The midfielder was issued with the punishment yesterday after the FA found him guilty of "tarnishing the image of football" in the wake of his sending-off at Manchester City when he elbowed Carlos Tévez and kicked Sergio Aguero before trying to headbutt Vincent Kompany.
The FA announced Barton received an automatic four-game suspension, with the additional eight matches a consequence of the manner of his dismissal. He was also fined £75,000.
It now remains to be seen whether of not his club will hold on to him for next season though any decision to release him is likely to cost just shy of £11m as they would be obliged to honour the finances of his contract which has three years to run on £70,000-a-week.
According to the Evening Standard, QPR are still unable to legally sack Barton in spite of his conduct.
Speaking earlier this month, QPR chairman Tony Fernandes said: "There are experienced people who will come back to me and we'll review the whole situation.
"Joey has been an integral part of the club and has played his part.
"This is football, and I'm new to it. I don't profess to have all the answers."
Barton denied the charge of violent conduct against Kompany, but the FA said the case against the player was found to be proved.
The acts were condemned by the chairman of the regulatory commission, who stated: "There are rules of conduct that should be adhered to, and such behaviour tarnishes the image of football in this country, particularly as this match was the pinnacle of the domestic season and watched by millions around the globe."
The FA's regulatory panel had discretionary powers to further increase the length of the suspension if charges were found to be proven.
Barton's admission on Twitter that his violent actions were a cynical ploy to provoke a City player to be sent off saw those discretionary powers employed.
Barton insisted via Twitter on the day of his sending-off that he had not lost his head, but that a team-mate "suggested I should try to take 1 of theirs with me".
No comments:
Post a Comment