I would have loved to face up to Joey Barton
WHEN predictions for the new season were being penned, the name Barton seemed destined to make its mark on the Scottish Premiership.
Rangers midfielder Joey of that ilk may have returned to England, tail between legs, after eight mediocre games and one explosive training-ground bust-up.
However, Partick Thistle’s versatile Adam Barton can certainly claim to have fulfilled the pre-season prophecies by turning heads with a series of eye-catching displays.
In October, the 25-year-old was named the Player of the Month across the entire Scottish Premiership. Yesterday, he added the club’s Player of the Month award for November from McCrea Financial Services to his collection.
It all adds up to an impressive start by a player who harbours hopes that a string of fine displays for Thistle, including in front of the BT Sport cameras against Celtic tomorrow night, could help him follow Aberdeen’s Jonny Hayes into the Republic of Ireland’s reckoning.
Indeed, his only real disappointment since heading north from Portsmouth in the summer is that he did not get the chance to play against his notorious namesake.
‘It was a big thing for Rangers to sign a player of Joey Barton’s calibre,’ he told Sportsmail. ‘I would have loved to have played against him because he’s played most of his career at the highest level. I’d have loved to have seen what it takes to play at the top level in England but what happened, happened and I didn’t get the chance to face him.
‘But I couldn’t have expected a better start to my new campaign in Scotland. Winning the league award in October was a high for me and getting the club award is a big bonus, too.
‘I’ve got international ambitions and I think coming up here and doing well can only help that happen. A lot of people say you come up here and do well and you get a lot of hype for it. You get rewarded for doing well. I’ve won a couple of personal trophies now and I just want to keep doing what I’m doing.’
For Thistle, a daunting December to remember sees them host Celtic before facing Hearts at Tynecastle then a trip to Celtic Park.
Barton would love to add being part of the first Thistle side to beat Celtic since January 1994 to his burgeoning CV.
Celtic are undefeated domestically but Barton believes Alan Archibald’s men can take heart from running Rangers close last month, taking the lead through Kris Doolan before conceding two heart-breaking late goals to Joe Dodoo.
‘It would be nice to change that record against Celtic,’ said a smiling Barton, who is equally at home spraying passes in midfield or as a ball-playing central defender.
‘If we turn up with the mind-set that we are going to get beaten then we would be as well just going home. It’s 11 v 11 and anything can happen. You just need to look at the FA Cup down in England to see that teams from a lower league can beat higher ranked teams.
‘Celtic could go unbeaten all season but that’s very rare. Upsets always happen and we are next on their list and it could be us. So there’s no point being negative.
‘We know if we don’t turn up it could be a good beating but, equally, we are capable of getting something from the game.
‘Also, I think we play better against stronger opposition. I think we tend to struggle a bit more against teams who play longer, direct balls. Celtic are obviously not that kind of team so it might work out in our favour. We have had good performances this season at home against Aberdeen and Rangers, where we should have won but didn’t even get a point. Hopefully, we will put on a good performance against Celtic.’
Barton admits he has found it hard to get used to how tight the Scottish Premiership is this season. A win or a loss can be the difference between being rock bottom or in the top six.
Thistle may be only off the bottom on goal difference but the former Preston, Coventry and Portsmouth player is adamant performances have not matched their lowly league position.
‘I’m still trying to get my head around the table,’ he said.
‘People are telling me it’s never been this tight before. But it’s brilliant for the fans and the pundits because it’s so competitive and exciting. We’ve got tough games coming up against Celtic, Hearts and Celtic again but everyone faces everyone over the season.
‘I feel we just need a bit of luck to turn the corner. We had a goal chopped off in our 1-1 draw at Hamilton last week that was not offside. We were wondering why the luck was going against us. But we can’t go into games blaming luck. We need to turn performances into points.’