Joey Barton has taken to Twitter to question West Ham midfielder Kevin Nolan’s absence from the latest England squad.
Barton, on loan at Marseille from QPR, played alongside Nolan at Newcastle and believes his former team-mate deserves a chance at international level.
He tweeted: “Good to see Leon Osman get a call up, about time. My brain is asking why no Kevin Nolan? Surely, he warrants a call up more than most?
“On Premier League goals alone, consistently for the last 8 yrs, he deserves at least a call up.”
Barton added: “Osman good player in the last few years. But he’s 32 and isnt gonna improve an average side. If there giving out charity caps…
“All am saying is, Nolan should of had a call up years ago. As for me, well thats something entirely different. Lets not go there.”
Meanwhile, QPR chairman Tony Fernandes has admitted that next weekend’s clash with fellow strugglers Southampton is a must-win game.
A 1-0 defeat at Stoke meant Rangers, still without a league victory this season, returned to the bottom of the Premier League.
They were leapfrogged by the Saints, who visit Loftus Road next.
Fernandes, who has consistently backed manager Mark Hughes, tweeted: “We got to cut out errors. One error cost us and we got to take our chances.
“Team played as planned. Must win next win. No panic. Table is compressed. Defense was awful now fairly solid. Midfield strong. Got to score now”
He later added: “Love everything about QPR. Nothing comes easy but the pain will be worth in. We are in for the long run. We live and learn. Doing our best.”
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This post was last modified on 17/11/2012