Football manager Joey Barton charged with assault after woman injured

<span>Photograph: Simon Galloway/PA</span>
Photograph: Simon Galloway/PA

Former footballer Joey Barton has been charged with assault by beating after a woman suffered a head injury at a residential address in London.

Barton, who is currently manager of League Two club Bristol Rovers, will appear at Wimbledon magistrates court on Monday. It follows an incident at a house in Kew, south-west London, on 2 June.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan police confirmed the court appearance: “Joseph Barton, 38, of Widnes, is due to appear on bail on Monday 26 July at Wimbledon magistrates court charged with assault by beating.

“The charge relates to an incident which took place at a residential property in Kew on Wednesday 2 June in which a woman received a head injury.”

The spokesperson said the London ambulance service did not go to the scene. Barton was arrested on the day of the incident, bailed pending further inquiries, then subsequently charged.

Barton, a long-term resident of Kew, made his name as a midfielder in the Premier League with Manchester City, before finishing his playing career with Burnley in 2017. He subsequently spent almost three years as manager of Fleetwood Town, before moving to Bristol Rovers earlier this year.