FANS have blasted “bitter” Joey Barton as he slammed SPOTY winner Mary Earps calling her a “big sack of spuds”.
The goalkeeper, 30, who was a key part of the Lionesses side which reached the Women’s World Cup final in the summer, topped the public vote for the award on Tuesday.
Her success made her the third consecutive female winner after her England teammate Beth Mead won last year and US Open champion Emma Raducanu in 2021.
But Barton, who claimed women are not qualified to talk about the men’s game, questioned why Earps won it ahead of a host of champions in other fields.
He tweeted: “So the best sports person this year is… A Women Goalie. Lost in a couple of finals this year. Not won a sausage.
“So popular that Nike didn’t even sell a replica jersey before tournament.
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“You telling me all those who jumped on that bandwagon, haven’t voted in the BBC nonsense?
“Good luck to Mary. Hope she makes a few quid.”
Joey then added: “To win before Ronnie O’Sullivan and Frankie Dettori…? Well, that’s just madness to me.
“Both almost genius like in their respective fields. They’ve lost to a big sack of spuds that plays in goal for a girls team.”
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However many fans jumped to the defence of Earps.
One said: “Joey Barton is a sad bitter t***.”
Another commented: “Such a great moment for women’s sport. Mary Earps is such a talented footballer and an inspiration to so many young girls.
“She’s also a hero to us older girls who didn’t get the chance. Thank goodness things have changed. Sport brings the world together.”
The Prince of Wales also congratulated the Manchester United shot stopper.
William, who is president of the Football Association, sent her a message on social media, posting on X: “Hugely well deserved, Mary. Congratulations! W”.
It comes after Piers Morgan insisted that the Lionesses’ star should not have claimed the prize.
Former Manchester City and Newcastle star Barton went into a tirade on X, formerly known as Twitter, claiming women are not qualified to talk about the men’s game.
He said that women commentating on men’s football was the same as him “talking about knitting or netball” – and called those who disagreed with him “eunuchs” and “fart parcels”.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
