Alex Scott has fired back at Joey Barton's claims that she 'shouldn't comment on men's football' in a post to her Instagram Story – laughing at even mentioning his name.
Barton, who is currently unemployed after leaving Bristol Rovers as manager last month, has come under fire this week for his controversial views that women should 'not speak to any authority' in the men's game – before doubling down on his views. on Piers Morgan uncensored.
The outspoken 41-year-old hit out at the “woke agenda” for the increase in female professionals working in the men's arena, but insisted his thoughts had nothing to do with sexism.
Since appearing on the TV show, Barton has continued to rage on social media, claiming that “highly qualified men can't get jobs on TV because underqualified women are meeting these quotas.”
This included a claim that Scott was 'not allowed to comment on men's football' as he continued his tirade about women's involvement in the sport.
BBC Sports pundit Alex Scott fired back at Joey Barton's criticism ahead of an interview in which she joked with a friend that they would 'talk about Barton'
Barton claimed Scott was a 'fantastic women's footballer' but 'not qualified to speak with any authority about the men's game'
Barton has claimed Scott 'shouldn't comment on men's football' as he continued his rants about women's involvement in men's football
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The BBC pundit broke her silence on Friday morning when she took to her Instagram Story for the first time to address the situation.
In the video, Scott (behind the camera) asks her colleague: 'Who are you interviewing today?'.
The man inside the video joked, “Maybe it's actually you” before Scott interjected and asked, “What are we going to talk about, Joey Barton?” before bursting into hysterics.
When asked about Scott commentating on men's matches, Barton said during his appearance on Piers Morgan's show on TalkTV: “She didn't play in it.”
He added: 'One is 200 years old and one is about 40 years old… it's the same rules, but football is about much more than just rules… The games take place at two different speeds.
“I don't care where you come from or how many games you've played, but you have to have some credible work to get there… the world has gone crazy.”
He had previously responded to a fan who questioned him about Scott's credentials as a pundit, saying: 'Fantastic women's footballer. Decorated in her game. If she's hosting a gentleman's game, no problem, anchor the show. But no, in my opinion she is not qualified to speak to any authority on the men's game.”
Scott
During Morgan's show, Barton explained that he didn't want to be seen as advocating sexism, but that he was against “unqualified opinions.”
'I don't want to see sexism in football, but if we don't properly debate the role of women in football broadcasting, this will just rise and rise and ruin the experience of watching men's football at elite level. Barton said when Morgan asked him if the language in his social media posts had been deliberately inflammatory.
'Everywhere you look now there's some unqualified opinion pontificating about the sport I love, and it's ruining my experience – to fuel this woke agenda, and it's going to massively increase sexism because it has to be a true meritocracy . We need people qualified to fill these roles.”
Barton's posts come after he previously expressed support for the #HERGAMETOO initiative.
This is a campaign that aims to combat sexism in sport, with Barton posing with a promotional card for the cause when he was manager of Bristol Rovers.
Barton doubled down on his controversial views when he appeared on Piers Morgan: Uncensored on Thursday night
Barton has previously expressed his support for the #HERGAMETOO initiative, which aims to combat sexism in sports
He also caused controversy in October after voicing his apparent support for former Newcastle and England manager Kevin Keegan's comments that he does not like female footballers talking about men's football.
Speaking at a live event in Bristol, Keegan had said: '(I don't like) listening to ladies talking about the England men's team during the match because I don't think it's the same experience. I have a problem with that.'
In response, Barton had posted to X: “Kevin Keegan. Ballon D'or winner 1978. England manager. He's ready.'
On Friday morning, Barton continued his tirade by claiming female staff had 'sent nude photos to players' and had 'full-blown affairs' at previous clubs he worked at.
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