Joey Barton has insisted that he would like to see out the rest of his playing career at Newcastle; Barton seems to have settled after three turbulent years at Tyneside.The midfielder has been in great form for the Magpies this season, helping the club to eighth position in the Premier League.
The 28-year-old has now paid tribute to the club, stating that he is excited about what the future holds at St James' Park and wants to extend his current deal.
"I've started discussions with the club, and everything seems to be going in the right direction. So hopefully we'll get that sorted as soon as possible, and I can just concentrate on doing my utmost for Newcastle United, " he said.
"I want to stay here."
Joey Barton is keen to see Alan Pardew strengthen the squad during the transfer window, adding to the injury-hit squad in order to compete with best teams in the League.
It was disappointing to get knocked out of the FA Cup, but realistically I'm not sure we have the squad to compete on all fronts," he added.
"The pace that the Spurs game was played at was the hardest I've played at for a long time. The body is under a lot of strain.
"Man Utd and Chelsea use the squad rotation system so players can get a breather. We aren't able to do that at the minute until we improve the squad.
"Realistically our goal was to consolidate Premier League status. We're on target to do that if we can win our next two games.
"We've lost Smudge, Tiote is suspended and the big man (Andy Carroll ) is out along with Dan Gosling, who has had a setback.
"We need bodies - we've got 12 or 13 players fit at the moment who have experience.
"If we get injuries in key areas we'll be in trouble, as would any squad."
