Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton has been jailed for six months after being convicted at Liverpool Crown Court of assault and affray.

The England international was arrested in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of December 27 after becoming involved in a confrontation outside a McDonald's restaurant.

The 25-year-old admitted charges of affray and assault occasioning actual bodily harm after CCTV cameras caught him knocking an unidentified man to the ground.

He then straddled the man, and punched him four or five times as his cousin threw food at the victim before Barton punched him up to 15 times more.

Minutes later, the player attacked a 16-year-old, punching him and leaving him with broken teeth.

It followed a series of verbal confrontations inside the restaurant after a night out during which he had consumed 10 pints of lager and five bottles of lager.

The implications for Barton's career are as yet unclear, although he is certain to miss the start of the Magpies' new season.

Newcastle released a short, non-comittal statement on their official website which read: "Newcastle United notes the sentence passed to Joey Barton at Liverpool Crown Court today.

"The club is considering the verdict and will be making no further comment at the moment."

Judge Henry Globe QC, at Liverpool Crown Court, told Barton it was a "violent and cowardly act".

Barton's brother, Andrew Barton, also admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and a third defendant, his cousin Nadine Wilson, 27, pleaded guilty to affray and common assault.

Barton had pleaded guilty last month but the court initially imposed an order preventing details being published after the player's lawyers argued it could prejudice a jury in a separate assault trial he faces in Manchester.

The court lifted the reporting restrictions on Tuesday after hearing arguments from media organisations that information about Barton's history of bad behaviour was in the public domain.

The incident took place as the player was awaiting trial for two other offences: alleged criminal damage of a taxi and the alleged assault of former Manchester City team-mate Ousmane Dabo, 31, who now plays for Lazio.

In the Manchester case, he is due to stand trial accused of assaulting his former team-mate in a training ground incident in May last year. He has pleaded not guilty.

Sporting Life / Reuters / Eurosport