Joey Barton took a lot of stick from the media and the fans during his dark days in prison ... but Kevin Keegan told Mike Ashley to hang onto the player rather than cancel his contract.

And Chris Hughton agrees that the former Man City midfielder is a "quality player".

The stand-in Toon boss played down reports that Barton may be missing into the New Year after suffering a fresh foot injury setback.

Hughton appeared to suggest that the former England international won’t be missing too many games.

Hughton: “He played through two games with it. It’s a blow because Joey’s a quality player and you want all your quality players (available).

“He certainly won’t be fit for tomorrow or Saturday, but I would like to think that he is not too far away.”