THE trial of a football manager who denies assaulting then-Barnsley Football Club boss Daniel Stendel in an alleged altercation at Oakwell will continue today.
Joey Barton pleaded not guilty to assaulting the German on April 13, 2019, when his former side, Fleetwood Town, played the Reds.
Stendel had previously given evidence via video link from a court in Germany in June due to coronavirus restrictions, but Judge Jeremy Richardson ruled the quality of sound was not sufficient to avoid mistranslations and adjourned the trial.
After the jury in the case were sworn in last Friday, the trial got underway on Monday and witnesses have been giving evidence.
Stendel told Sheffield Crown Court he was shoved to the ground after Barton ‘was aggressive during the game’.
As he made his way into the tunnel, he told the court, he was ‘surprised’ by a ‘hard shove’.
“I then fell forward, without being able to protect myself, into the metal bars in the tunnel”, he said.
The court heard Stendel suffered damage to a tooth, and bruising to his arm, hand and knee.
The trial continues.
