Joey Barton: 'Gervinho is a cheat'

Newcastle United midfielder Joey Barton has branded Arsenal's Gervinho a 'cheat' after the pair clashed at St James's Park this evening.

Gervinho was dismissed for slapping the Magpies midfielder after Barton had grappled with the Ivory Coast international.

Barton, 28, felt that Gervinho had gone down too easily under a challenge from Cheick Tiote.

"Merely called out a fellow professional for blatantly cheating. Everyone hates a cheater," Barton wrote on Twitter.

"What do you want me to do? Stand and trade blows with Gervinho? If you raise your hands to a player's faces you should be off. The ref got it right.

"I train all summer to have him cheat us out of a hard earned point. It's not on. Diving should be a three game ban."

The match ended in a goalless draw.