Joey Barton sacked just hours after he called rival boss "fat man" in final game
Bristol Rovers have sacked Joey Barton - less than 48 hours after he called rival boss Steve Evans "fat man" and a "weeble".
The Gas currently sit 16th in League One and have won just one of their last five matches, with Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Stevenage proving to be Barton's final game at the helm. They had previously been beaten by Oxford and Burton either side of the international break and have collected just 16 points from a possible 39 this season.
Barton led the club to promotion to League One in his first full season and guided Rovers to a respectable 17th place finish last term. Andy Mangan has been appointed as Rovers' interim manager and is expected to lead the team for their home game against Northampton on Saturday.
A club statement read: "Bristol Rovers Football Club can confirm that today the club has relieved First Team Manager Joey Barton of his duties.
"Everyone at the club would like to thank Joey for all his efforts and wish him well in the future. In the interim, Andy Mangan will lead the team supported by Glenn Whelan, Danny Ventre and Anssi Jaakkola who will remain in post."
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Barton was appointed as Rovers' new boss in February 2021 and couldn't stop them from dropping into League Two. However, the following year he led them to automatic promotion, losing just one of their final 19 matches and thrashing Scunthorpe on the final day to pip Northampton to promotion on Goals Scored. It was a remarkable achievement for Barton and Rovers as they somehow secured an automatic promotion place alongside Forest Green and Exeter.
That ended up earning Barton a new three-year contract extension to keep him at the club until 2026, and Rovers consolidated in the third tier last season with 14 wins, 11 draws and 21 defeats from 46 matches, finishing eight points above the relegation zone.
Joey Barton has been sacked by Bristol Rovers (Getty Images)Following a difficult start to this campaign, Barton's time at the Memorial Stadium has come to an end. During his final game in charge against Stevenage on Tuesday, Barton allegedly called rival boss Evans a "fat man" and a "weeble". Chris Martin earned The Gas a point in a fiercely contested clash after Jamie Reid opened the scoring.
It wasn't the first time the duo have came to blows, either. Back in October 2022, Evans suggested that Rovers didn't deserve to get promoted from League Two. The ex-Leeds boss said that Scunthorpe's decision to field a youthful side on the final day "had no place in football" and added that Northampton "should be in League One", not Rovers.
Joey Barton spent almost three years in charge of Bristol Rovers (Getty Images)Barton ruthlessly responded to Evans' comments at the time. He told the Bristol Post: "It's a helluva lot different looking at the fixture list and seeing a trip to Pride Park and a trip Hillsborough, rather than Crawley and Stevenage and big Steve Evans charging up and down the touchline.
"He's commented this week, hasn't he? It must've been in between screaming at officials. He's commented that we were lucky or something like that. I haven’t read it, I’ve just heard about it. I don’t know why, it’s bizarre. He won’t want to help Jon (Brady). Jon doesn’t like me anyway and I don’t think he will send me a Christmas card.
"Steve is entitled to his opinion. There’s nothing wrong with what he said. We’re up now, so tough s*** on that one."
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