Managers and players are not always the best of friends and that was certainly the case between Joey Barton and Mark Hughes.
The pair will cross paths on Saturday when Barton's Bristol Rovers take on Bradford City, managed by Hughes, at the Mem. Barton captained Queens Park Rangers in the Premier League under Hughes in 2012, but they did not see eye to eye and the now Gas boss left on loan for Marseille that summer, a few months before the ex-Wales manager was sacked.
In promoting the release of his autobiography No Nonsense in 2016, Barton said Hughes – then in charge of Stoke City – was a "terrible manager" with "really poor people skills". In said book, Barton discussed their fractious relationship and he has later said they "hated" each other during their time at QPR.
Barton, however, made clear his respect for Hughes and his career in the game, insisting there will be no hard feelings when their teams do battle in BS7 on Saturday.
"We didn’t agree with team selections etc, but he was manager and I was a player," Barton said. "I wouldn’t say we’re on each other’s Christmas card list, but I’ve got enormous respect for Mark.
"As a player, he played for Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Manchester United, Everton and Chelsea. I have enormous respect for him as a football man and, if I’m honest with you, to see a manager who has managed for Wales and in the Premier League for multiple years to have the humility to drop down into the fourth tier, maybe to get his name back in coaching or get himself back on the horse. He gets nothing but respect from me as a football man for that.
"Are we going to be civil towards each other? Yeah, I imagine so, absolutely. I’ll definitely offer my hand. Whether he shakes it or not, I couldn’t tell you.
"But for me, it’s another manager and another team. There are no hard feelings. We didn’t see eye to eye all the time when we were together, but there are probably another hundred people I could say that about who I played with or against."
Former Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers Fulham and Southampton boss Hughes has overseen mixed results since being announced as the surprise replacement for Derek Adams at Valley Parade, but he has led the Bantams to impressive wins on the road at Forest Green Rovers and Hartlepool United.
They may have little to play for in terms of advancing their league position in the remainder of the campaign after a disappointing season, but with the pressure on for the promotion-chasing Gas in the final seven games, Barton is expecting the toughest challenge of sixth-placed Rovers' season.
He explained: "We know they will be well prepared and well drilled because he’s (Hughes) been an international and Premier League manager, so their preparation will be way above the level that he’s currently managing at.
"To get him there, they must have given him some assurances about the summer and beyond, and the players playing under him will probably want to be at a club of Bradford’s size in the division.
"It’s going to be our toughest game of the season. I think it’s going to be the most difficult game we’ve had we’re preparing in that mindset. They’ve got lots of players who know what they’re doing at this level and, as Carlisle points to last week, if we don’t get those early goals or get in the ascendancy, every team in this division carries a threat."
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