Joey Barton bet AGAINST Celtic to spark gambling ban as defiant Rangers flop declares 'I knew they were s***'

Former Rangers star Joey Barton admits that bets placed on Celtic against Barcelona led to him receiving a ban from football.

Barton was suspended for 18 months by the English FA after breaching betting rules while playing at Burnley - shortly after he re-signed from Rangers in 2017 for placing bets on 1,260 matches over a 12-year period. The ban would go on to be reduced to 13 months after an appeal but only after Burnley had released the midfielder from his contract - which would spell the end of the then-35-year-old's playing career.

The one-time England cap has now revealed that it was bets on Celtic's clash with Barcelona that saw him hauled up over the long list of charges. Barton was at the heart of the Rangers midfield as Celtic ran riot against their rivals in 2016 - running out 5-1 winners. But just days later, Lionel Messi and co handed out a 7-0 thrashing in the Champions League to Brendan Rodgers men.

The former Ibrox star - who spent an ill-fated six month spell working under Mark Warburton before his contract was ripped up - claimed he put a bet on a heavy defeat for the Hoops because he knew they were "s***". Barton told Anything Goes with James English": "We played Celtic and lost 5-1, and Celtic if you remember played on the Wednesday against Barcelona in the Camp Nou.

"I knew Celtic were s*** - even though they beat us the game was quite close, the sending off massively changed it. We were massively underprepared and there wasn't much in it.

"They were ahead of us but there wasn't loads in it. There wasn't certainly as much as people felt. So I've gone to all my mates going 'Celtic are not as good as what they are' - because once I have had a scrap with you I am very good at nullifying you the