Joey Barton branded 'wet wipe' for homophobic tirade during Arsenal's Bournemouth defeat

Joey Barton is no stranger to stirring controversy among his followers – and his latest tirade of homophobic tweets makes no exception, with fans clapping back at the former midfielder

Controversial former footballer Joey Barton has angered fans after sharing a series of tweets referring to sexuality.

Barton appeared to send some live tweets during the Bournemouth versus Arsenal game tonight, where the Cherries sensationally clinched a 2-0 win over the title-chasing Gunners. Barton's three Tweets were sent over two hours, with the first being released at 6pm on Saturday, October 19.

He was angry at referee Rob Jones' decision to send off Arsenal defender William Saliba, who got his marching orders after his yellow card for fouling Evanilson was escalated to a red after a VR review. Some of his followers supported Barton's tirade, while others shunned him for his views.

The first tweet read: “The game is a game for homosexuals. Evidenced by the decision in the Bournemouth vs Arsenal game. Never a sending off.” he accompanied the post with a rainbow emoji.

The next said: “Gays have taken over football. It’s a game for men.” And the third: “Football is gay!”

Barton’s comments have a view count of well over 1million. Several fans jumped to his replies to share their thoughts.

One X user wrote: “Jesus man. Really? That you use homosexuality to make a point about an arguably poor refereeing decision. Used to appreciate you. You’ve gone full donut now.”

A second noted: “He was last man you f***ing wet wipe.” A third added: “Making a decision homophobic Joey, nice touch, didn’t say this when you were in charge of Fleetwood did you?”

Others branded him a “melon,” while some simply commented “grow up man.” This was not the first time the midfielder has been under fire for his comments.

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.