England legend John Barnes narrowly escapes bankruptcy with 11th hour payment
Former Liverpool and England footballer John Barnes has paid his money that was owed to the tax authority.
Barnes, 59, was facing bankruptcy back in December over an unpaid tax bill of over £200,000. The ex-Liverpool winger was the subject of a bankruptcy petition from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for the seventh time but it is now understood that Barnes' case has been resolved.
It occurred at an Insolvency and Companies Court hearing in London on Monday. A HMRC official told the judge that the money has been paid up in full by Barnes. He was reportedly not at the hearing but was represented by barrister Jonathan Lester in court.
The case had been adjourned back in February to allow "settlement negotiations" to take place. Megan Vanderhook, who represented HMRC, said that Barnes had, at the February hearing, repaid £100,000. He is now debt free - 24 years since retiring as a player in 1999.
Barnes started his professional career at Watford and made his senior debut in 1981. He later cemented himself as a first-team regular at the Hornets. After an impressive 296 appearances and 85 goals, Barnes made the big-money switch to Liverpool in 1987 and instantly became a cult hero at Anfield with his performances on the left flank.
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The Jamaican-born attacker won two First Division titles and two FA Cups during his time in the North-West, while also striking 106 times in 403 matches in his 10-year stint at the Reds.
Barnes made the move further up north to Newcastle for the twilight years of his career, before joining Charlton Athletic as his final club. During his international days, Barnes was capped 79 times by England and is known for his role in the song 'World in Motion', where he rapped in New Order's No. 1 single.
John Barnes has paid back his unpaid tax (Getty Images)Following retirement, Barnes stepped into management and coached Celtic, Jamaica and Tranmere, before being declared bankrupt in 2009 over tax debts just days after being fired at the Super White Army. At the time, Barnes said the issue was a "tax oversight" before the order was later rescinded.
According to Land Registry documents, Barnes was also the subject of bankruptcy petitions in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2019. He returned to Liverpool as an ambassador back in November.
Speaking on a recent Up Front podcast with Simon Jordan, Barnes said: "I don’t think his perspective of me is fair, not fair at all. When Graeme [Souness] first arrived at the club, we went out together and we talked about how he was going to build the team around me and how great it was going to be.
"I then started having injuries – this was in 1991. Graeme then felt frustrated in me because I wasn’t able to do the things that I used to be able to before. When I ruptured my Achilles tendon, they thought I would never play football again – the doctor actually told me this after I retired.
"He said that not only did it rupture, it shredded, which means when they tried to put it back together they had to cut it shorter. At the time I was just happy to be back playing, I wasn’t noticing that I couldn’t run, I was just glad to be back on the field."
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