As I mentioned earlier, Barton is a controversial figure and, personally, I don`t care for him as a person.
But as a manager, Barton has been successful. According to the figures I saw, of the 128 games he`s had as a manager, he`s won 54, drawn 31 and lost 43. That`s a winning record.
At Fleetwood, he did a good job on the field and turned that club into a quality football team. He recruited wisely and got the best out of players - Fleetwood was VERY unlucky not to have been promoted to the Championship last season - they were a fine footballing side,but had one of those days at Wembley and lost to Wycombe.
Bristol Rovers are similar to Fleetwood in that they (now) appear to have sound financial backing. In truth, Bristol has better potential than Fleetwood, because of the crowd potential in that city. It`s understandable why Brizzle have taken him on, he might be a thoroughly unpleasant character, and there are plenty that fit that bill in UK football ownership and management, but there`s no denying he`s a successful manager.
Might well turn out to be a smart move by Bristol Rovers.