The big interview – Joey Barton: I was due to have talks with Arsenal once – and yes, I’d have loved to play for them

Joey Barton
Photography: Martin Hunter

How hard was it when Everton released you as a youngster?
Tony Green, Liverpool

It was an incredibly difficult time. I was a boyhood Evertonian, standing on the terraces and waiting outside of the training ground for autographs. After being in the academy from the age of seven to 14, to be told that someone has decided you’re not big enough – not that you’re not good enough – is tough. But you either mope and confirm they were right, or you say, ‘I’m going to prove you wrong.’ I think I’ve validated that I was right and they were wrong.

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Chris Flanagan
Senior Staff Writer

Chris joined FourFourTwo in 2015 and has reported from 20 countries, in places as varied as Jerusalem and the Arctic Circle. He's interviewed Pele, Zlatan and Santa Claus (it's a long story), as well as covering the World Cup, Euro 2020 and the Clasico. He previously spent 10 years as a newspaper journalist, and completed the 92 in 2017.