In the eyes of most people in the outside world, Joey Barton is a notorious villain, who can be ranked in the top ten of England's all-time villainous list, and those who hate him even think that he is in the top three.

But.

It would be a mistake to simply think of Joey Barton as a villain, and his literacy level is even higher than most players – he is studying philosophy at the University of Roehampton.

Maybe it's because he wants to deepen his studies, or maybe it's because he has a love for philosophy, but in short, Joey Barton is studying philosophy, and his grades are quite good among those who have received education at the same level.

This explains why Barton's tweets often quote philosophers.

Of course.

Even studying philosophy could not improve Barton's temper.

After the match between Newcastle United and Wigan Athletic, Barton took a half-day off to visit his tutor in Manchester, and they had already agreed a time to receive some private lectures to complete his dissertation.

It was night, so I definitely couldn't visit.

Barton was bored and simply looked for a bar, and happened to meet Gerrard, who was relaxing in the bar after the game, and the two must have known each other, but they didn't say a word at all, because they didn't have a good impression of each other at all.

Barton was born at Manchester City.

Steven Gerrard was born in Liverpool.

The players who grew up in the two cities will not have any connection at all, not to mention, Barton and Gerrard have contradictions, such as when they were on the field, Barton tackled Gerrard more than once, and the two even had a history of doing it three years ago.

Now they're in the same bar, and they look at each other and pretend they don't know each other.

When the bar's DJ changes a song, a conflict arises, Barton likes to listen to louder music, and Gerald likes to be rustic, and the two order the song at the same time, so that the bar DJ doesn't know what to do.

The two quarreled.

There was no one to help at all, and a few people who recognized them were all Manchester United fans.

And then.

The quarrel turned into physical contact, and I don't know who made the move, but the two fought with fists and feet anyway.

Barton didn't win.

Didn't lose either.

The process of the two fists and kicks was filmed, and the whole process only lasted a few seconds, Gerald was punched in the stomach, curled up on the ground for a long time, and Barton was not much better, he was slapped hard, and the movement of covering his cheeks looked like he had been broken.

The media said, "The police have intervened!" ”

In fact.

Because the two of them were fighting, they couldn't figure out who did it first, and the video was also blurry, it was difficult to determine who was the culprit, and the result of the fight was similar, Barton was a little miserable and was broken, and Gerald estimated that he was not comfortable.

In short, there are no winners.

In this case, neither of them wants to make a big deal out of it, otherwise they will be unlucky enough to be charged with a crime, and maybe they will have to go to prison for a few months, which must be very unworthy.

So there are no follow-up estimates.

But anyway, it happened, and even before Newcastle United and Liverpool played, it felt weird, with the outside world interviewing the injuries and whether they would play in the game.

There is also talk within Newcastle United.

Everyone is in good spirits.

For most players, Barton's fight is just a gossip, but Zhen Shaolong, Smith, and Milner are still worried about Barton, they called Barton, and the result was, "No problem!" Wait for me to teach that soft-egg a lesson tomorrow......"

Patton's tone was not small.

Zhen Shaolong measured the strength of Chinton and Gerrard, and found that Barton was still a little bit of a loss, Gerrard's muscles were obviously more, if he only competed in strength, Barton was really difficult to be an opponent.

"I remember teaching him a few tricks, how can he not really fight?"

Zhen Shaolong shook his head.

When he is okay on weekdays, Barton will also ask him for advice on martial arts, Zhen Shaolong has the "Suppression" skill, and he also knows a lot about the moves of fighting, and has taught Barton some moves.

It's a pity that it didn't work.

When the real fight started, Barton really didn't take advantage.

Of course.

It's not a bad thing not to take advantage.

If Barton takes a big advantage, Gerrard's discomfort is one thing, and Barton's situation will definitely be very bad.

————

Afternoon.

Barton returned to the club.

He didn't get back to the team until three o'clock in the afternoon, and he still had a white cloth on his cheek, which made him look a little vicious.

Teammates rushed over.

When asked about last night's incident, Barton immediately said viciously, "That is, he was lucky." I had already dodged, but I didn't expect to be hit by someone next to me before he could hit me! ”

"But he didn't take advantage of it!"

"I punched him hard in the stomach!"

Barton also clenched his fists hard, saying that his punch was heavy, and the others were all looking like 'you are very good', but in fact, they were a little unimpressed, because Gerrard appeared in the media in the morning, and he was sure that he was fit and able to participate in tomorrow's game.

Zhen Shaolong still couldn't look at it, and patted his shoulder heavily, "Joey, it seems that you have to practice your fighting skills more!" ”

"Of course, it's just self-preservation, don't use it to bully people!"

Barton suddenly changed his spirits, "Don't worry, boss, I will!" ”

Barton did feel very shameless.

Gerrard?

In the past, Uncle Barton didn't pay attention to it at all, but he didn't expect the other party to really have two brushes, and he still has a faint pain after punching, but Barton is not a person who gives in, he immediately stressed to head coach Keegan that he can play in the game, "I will find face in the game!" ”

Keegan felt that he couldn't let Barton play, what if this guy's mentality exploded and he staged a live-action PK show in the game?

Barton noticed Keegan's hesitation and immediately continued, "Football, of course." ”

It made Keegan feel a little better.

Zhen Shaolong happened to be standing next to him, but he didn't participate in the topic, in fact, like Keegan, he was also a little worried about Barton's emotions, this guy is really impulsive and bad, and he can't control it on the field, in order to save face, it is very likely that he will have another PK directly with Gerrard.

And then.

Zhen Shaolong received the system task, "Hint: A new system task has been triggered."

Your good friend Joey Barton has vowed to teach Steven Gerrard and Liverpool a lesson in the game to save face.

You need to help Barton fulfill his promise.

Mission Objective: Help Barton score three goals in the game.

(Note: During the mission, you will obtain the temporary skill "Dream Transfer".)

Fantasy Pass: When you want to create a chance for a specific teammate's goal, kick the ball to achieve the effect you imagined.

Designated target: Joey Barton. ）

Reward: Increases the appearance index a little. ”

After receiving the system prompt, Zhen Shaolong looked at Barton in a daze, he felt that Barton had become the protagonist, and he had become a supporting role, Barton wanted to teach Gerrard a lesson in the game, but the system had a task to let him try to help Barton?

That's awesome!

Zhen Shaolong felt a little jealous in his heart, but he felt that there was nothing to do, so he could only lament Patton's treatment as the protagonist, and then helped Barton and said, "Mr. Keegan, just let Joey play, I think he is fine, I have a very tacit understanding with Joey." ”

The latter sentence is true.

In the entire Newcastle United team, the most tacit understanding with Zhen Shaolong is Barton, Barton often passes the ball to Zhen Shaolong, which has become the 'first assistant' on the field, and Barton is also obedient to him, which naturally increases the tacit understanding.

The rest of the teammates are a little worse.

As soon as Keegan heard Zhen Shaolong speak, he thought about it carefully, and felt that it was not good to stifle the enthusiasm of the players, not to mention that Barton had always been in good shape except for his temper and accident, and he could continuously assist Zhen Shaolong.

His appearance was helpful.

"Okay!"

Eventually, Keegan agreed.

————

The next morning, Newcastle United continued training as they waited on the pitch for the James Park game, ready for the game.

Barton is recovering well from his injuries.

In the morning, the white cloth on his face was removed, and there was obvious redness and swelling on his cheeks, which was a little scary when you looked closely, but the actual impact was not great, at least it did not affect the kicking of the ball with his feet.

During training.

Zhen Shaolong took the time to talk to Barton about the afternoon game, and reminded him continuously, "You said that you want to use football to save face, Joey, I don't want to see you fight with the other party in the game." ”

"I see, boss."

Patton was sincere.

Zhen Shaolong is indeed a little worried, what happened to Barton, one is to affect the game, but also to himself, and the other is to directly affect the task, the red card was sent off, and no task can be completed.

And then.

He told Barton what to do, "I'll help you." When it's time for the game, you think you're a striker, keep rushing to the front and look for opportunities, and I'll pass the ball to you. ”

"Boss?"

Barton was a little confused.

"Just listen to me!" Zhen Shaolong said affirmatively.

Barton was very impressed.

Zhen Shaolong not only told Barton, but also reminded Grammie, who started together, "Wait for the game, retreat a little, I want Barton to go to the front, and I will pull back." ”

“……”

Geremi was very depressed when he heard it, because it was different from what the coach said, but he still recognized Zhen Shaolong's words.

No doubt.

In the entire team of Newcastle United, Zhen Shaolong is the most authoritative, and the head coach Keegan can only rank second, Keegan is the formulator of the general direction of tactics, but Zhen Shaolong said that there were any changes, and Keegan could only pretend not to see it.

Keegan got used to it.

With such a 'thorn' player under his command, what else can he do? The key is that every time Zhen Shaolong makes a private change, he can achieve very good results.

For example, the last game against Chelsea.

He wanted the team to play defensive counterattacks normally, but Zhen Shaolong let his teammates keep shooting from distance, and then the team beat Chelsea 7-1.

The results speak for themselves.

Even if he stabbed the media and fans and complained that 'the players don't listen to the command', the media and fans would support Zhen Shaolong, because Zhen Shaolong brought a big victory, but he felt that he was very useless as a coach.

Keegan could only be depressed alone.

Midday.

Keegan also heard rumors through the grapevine that Zhen Shaolong was ready to help Barton, and asked Barton to plug in more.

And then he started working on --

"Why did Zhen do that?"

"Could it be that Barton still has the potential to be a striker? Maybe there is, but it hasn't been excavated! ”

"Otherwise......"

"Maybe it's the unexpected effect of changing formations? Let Barton plug in, Gremira as the back midfielder, and it seems that Zhen's position should also be retreated? He's a core striker, arguably the center that attracts attention, but how exactly does the center retreat ...... arranged"

Keegan wrote and drew on the tactical board, frowning and thinking carefully, but no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't find the theoretical support for adjustment.

"Is it because of my lack of ability?"

"Old?"

"An outdated understanding of tactics?"

Keegan gritted his teeth one last time, "I don't believe it!" What effect can this completely inexplicable adjustment have? ”