Newcastle's Joey Barton insists he does not fear going to prison if he is found guilty of assaulting former Manchester City team-mate Ousmane Dabo. The 25-year-old has pleaded not guilty to a charge of actual bodily harm and now faces a trial, which is expected to start in June 2008.
"If you go to prison for defending yourself then, yes, I suppose I'll think about it," he told the BBC.
"But I don't care. It doesn't scare me at all. I've done nothing wrong."
The alleged assault took place at City's training ground on 1 May.
If found guilty, the England midfielder could face a sentence of up to five years in jail but he said: "I can go home and sleep at night and know I've done what I thought was right.
Nobody cares whether I'm innocent or guilty - nobody cares
Joey Barton
"I don't think I'm a bad person. If the incidents I've been involved in had been to anyone other than a Premier League footballer, I don't think they'd even be mentioned.
"It was something that I've seen five, six, seven times since I've been a professional footballer."
Barton says his reputation has left him short of support among fans.
"Nobody cares whether I'm innocent or guilty - nobody cares. I'm already guilty before I've been sat in front of a judge - that's the disappointing thing," he said.
"It's my reputation. It's my fault I've got that reputation, but you shouldn't be slaughtered for trying to make yourself a better person. One day I will get to speak about the full facts."
Barton was suspended by City and subsequently sold to Newcastle United in a £5.8m deal in June.
He returned to action for the Magpies in November following a metatarsal injury that had kept him out since the summer
If i come across the table and take your f*****g eyes out ,will you remember
