Hull not interested in Barton

Hull on Saturday dismissed reports linking them with controversial Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton.

Hull want to strengthen their squad ahead of the new season but say they are not planning to offer the 27-year-old a Premier League lifeline.

Assistant manager Brian Horton said: “Joey Barton is a very good footballer. I know him, I have done things with him in Manchester.

“He has obviously had issues and that is a shame because he can be a very good footballer but at this present time I don’t think it’s an area that really needs to be looked at.”

Hull have had a frustrating summer in the transfer market with three high-profile targets opt for other clubs.

They lost Fraizer Campbell and Marc-Antoine Fortune to Sunderland and Celtic respectively with an attempt to sign Michael Owen also came to nothing as Manchester United stepped in.

Horton added: “It is frustrating, we are trying like hell.

“But they have gone to three big clubs. If we were losing Joe Bloggs from Division Three it would be a different matter.

“We want to bring someone in but we need to have a bit of patience, things will evolve.

“It’s not the fact we are not trying to get better players in.”