What They're Saying

• by Soccer America , Jul 28, 2008

"People have opinions, and you must respect those, but mine is to give him another chance and back him. There are a lot of things he needs to put right -- but I think he can do it. ... He's served his sentence, he's been punished for what he did wrong."

-- Newcastle United coach Kevin Keegan on midfielder Joey Barton, who is due to be released from prison next week after serving a six-month sentence for punching a man to the ground and pummeling him up to 20 times with his fists. Barton's criminal past also includes sticking a lit cigar into the face of a Manchester City teammate's face at a Christmas party and Barton was convicted for a training ground attack on another teammate, Ousmane Dabo, that left Dabo unconscious and bleeding. (AFP)