Barton attacks Giggs, Terry

Outspoken QPR midfielder Joey Barton lived up to his reputation of being outspoken, after he launched a scathing verbal attack on Ryan Giggs, John Terry and the England national rugby team.

Barton was one of the five speakers at the Professional Players Federation national conference on Monday and was at his candid best, sharing his views on matters like social media, the right to privacy, the Royal Family, the London riots, the Hillsborough disaster, MP expenses etc.

However, his comments on Manchester United stalwart Ryan Giggs and Jason Terry stole the show. He spoke about Giggs' alleged affair with his own sister-in-law, saying: "The Giggs issue in any walk of life is not right.

"The behaviour of the man towards another man, towards his brother, it's not right, regardless of the player."

"What blew it up for Giggs was when he threatened to sue Twitter - bad legal advice," Barton said.

"I don't think anybody in the world's got the kind of money to get that case through. Everyone on Twitter got defensive about their right to freedom of speech."

Barton also attacked Terry, who had been in the limelight last year for an alleged affair with former teammate Wayne Bridge's girlfriend Vanessa Perroncel.

"There was a human element then about, as a man, what you should do either to your friend at work or one of your colleagues.

"It shouldn't have happened."

Barton also had a few words to say for the England national rugby team, stating that the football team would have been 'killed' had they performed like the rugby team at a World Cup.

"If that was an England football team at a World Cup, there would probably have been public executions when they got home.

"'Football's a gentleman's game played by thugs', I hear quite a lot, and, 'Rugby's a thug's game played by gentlemen'.

"The minute a footballer steps out of line, I think the media in this country - because of the sums of money they earn and also because of the stigma attached - are really quick to jump on it."

Barton went on to sensationally reveal that the FA had asked him to tone down his views and language, especially on Twitter, at a recent meeting.

"I feel that the FA came to hush me down or make me not have an opinion," he said.

"If they came to do that, they picked the wrong person, because there's no way I can be like that. If I didn't have an opinion, I'd cease to exist."

He added: "If I was to go out and pass comment and say: 'Everyone join this bondage club', then I think we would have an issue.

"But I'm going on there to have an extension of me.

"It sounds really bad when you say it because it just makes you think of Nazi Germany but it is a propaganda machine.

"Social media is a propaganda machine."