Scottish Premiership side Rangers face having to pay off the remainder of Joey Barton's £2M ($2.5M) contract if the club "cannot find grounds to sack him," according to the London TELEGRAPH. The controversial midfielder's Ibrox career "appears all but over after he was told not to report back for training on Monday morning." Barton is on the eve of completing a month-long club suspension but Rangers has "now confirmed he has been told to stay away for another week while further disciplinary action is considered." The player and his representatives are now "awaiting further instruction but it is almost certain he will not be seen again in a Rangers kit." He signed a two-year deal in July worth £20,000 ($24,800) a week and unless Rangers decide to dismiss him, "Barton will demand the balance of his contract is settled before moving on." The former Man City, Newcastle and QPR player was "banished from the club's training base last month following a furious row" with Manager Mark Warburton and teammate Andy Halliday in which he criticized the team's "approach to defending in the wake of their disastrous Old Firm defeat at Celtic Park." Barton is also being investigated by the Scottish FA "over allegations he broke strict betting rules." Despite being told to stay away from the club, Barton has "stated repeatedly that he wants to return and fight for his place." Reports last week claimed he had "even flown to Qatar to take part in a gruelling boot camp designed to have him operating at peak fitness ahead of his return to Warburton's squad" (TELEGRAPH, 10/9).
