Joey Barton trial: Daniel Stendel says rival attacked him

Joey Barton, who at the time was managing Fleetwood Town, denies assault occasioning actual bodily harm

Football manager Joey Barton pushed a rival manager into a metal post after becoming "aggressive" during a match, a court has heard.

The ex-England player is accused of attacking Barnsley boss Daniel Stendel in a tunnel at the South Yorkshire side's Oakwell ground.

Mr Stendel told Sheffield Crown Court he was shoved to the ground after Mr Barton was aggressive during the game.

Mr Barton, who was manager of Fleetwood Town at the time, denies assault.

A trial heard the attack happened at the end of a League One fixture in April 2019 which Barnsley won 4-2.

Giving evidence through an interpreter, Mr Stendel described a "tense atmosphere" during the match.

He said Mr Barton had appeared "annoyed and aggressive" and "had a go" at him after Fleetwood conceded in the second half.

'Forceful shove'

Mr Stendel said he went to shake Mr Barton's hand at the end of the match but was met with swearing.

As he made his way into the tunnel, he told the court, he was "surprised" by a "hard shove" in his right shoulder.

"I then fell forward, without being able to protect myself, into the metal bars in the tunnel", he said.

The court heard Mr Stendel suffered damage to a tooth, and bruising to his arm, hand and knee.

Asked by Ian Goldsack, prosecuting, how hard the push was, Mr Stendel said: "It was a forceful shove, otherwise wouldn't have fallen over."

Mr Stendel said the only person he saw after he was shoved from behind was rival coach Mr Barton.

Daniel Stendel was the Barnsley manager at the time of the alleged incident

Asked by Simon Csoka QC, defending, whether he had "just assumed that it was Mr Barton" due to earlier tensions, Mr Stendel said: "I can only say that I was pushed extremely.

"And directly after that happened I saw Joey Barton. These are the two things I can say."

The jury was shown video footage of the Barnsley manager leaving the pitch after the match and walking into the tunnel at the corner of the ground.

In the clip, Mr Barton can be seen to run into the tunnel moments before the structure starts to shake.

Following the sides' previous match, Mr Stendel told jurors, Mr Barton was intimidating towards him and squashed his hand during the post-match handshake.

A witness, Barnsley FC performance analyst intern Nathan Kirby, told the jury he saw Mr Barton shoulder-barge Mr Stendel.

He said: "Mr Barton carried on jogging and angled his run to shoulder-barge Mr Stendel with reasonable force in his back, causing Mr Stendel to fall forward and hit his face on a metal bar."

Opening the prosecution earlier, Mr Goldsack told the jury that Barton provided a prepared statement to police after his arrest, accepting the use of "industrial language" on the touchline but denying any barging into or assaulting of Mr Stendel.

Mr Barton, who is now Bristol Rovers manager, denies one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

The trial continues.