Joey Barton has revealed the Premier League club he came close to joining during his rollercoaster career in professional football.
The midfielder represented Manchester City and Newcastle during his early years.
He then joined QPR before falling out of favour in West London and spending a season on loan at Marseille.
He moved to Burnley in 2015, but the one-cap England international insists he came close to signing for another Premier League side.
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Barton insists he almost signed for West Ham, who were being managed by Slaven Bilic at the time.
“A West Ham fan has asked how close you were to signing for them,” said the interviewer.
Never one to mince his words, Barton said he has heard that former Hammers captain Mark Noble successfully put a stop to the move.
“I was [close], I had done me medical,” he responded.
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“I was two days in the building.
“I was very very close to signing for them, and then just a the last minute they disappeared.
“They just disappeared, [I went to] Burnley. [It was under] Slaven Bilic, I don’t think it was Bilic [who stopped the deal from going through].
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“From what I gathered, it was a couple of lads in the dressing room.
“I got told it was Mark Noble, but obviously I can see if it was him. I got told it was Mark Noble, I heard a few rumours, you never know."
Barton added: “That put the boot in, but you never know.
“I got told it was him which fits because I was better than him, well better than him. I would have just taken his jersey wouldn’t I.
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“If he’d have said anything, there was nothing he could do, literally nothing he could do about it.
“I would have said come here soft lad, sit yourself on the bench and watch someone who is better than you play every week.
“I’ll never know [for sure], I got told it was a couple of players, so I am just putting two and two together and making 15 there.
“I am going, who is inclined for me not to come in, whose position am I taking? His [Noble].”
Topics: West Ham, Premier League, Joey Barton
Jonathan Bray