NEWCASTLE midfielder Joey Barton willingly holds his hands up to past misdemeanours but believes his public profile has been distorted, insisting his troubles ''are not war crimes''.

Barton's £5.8m summer switch to Tyneside was overshadowed by an imminent court case involving an alleged assault on former Manchester City team-mate Ousmane Dabo.

Barton, who pleaded not guilty to the charge in court this week, will also be prevented from making his Newcastle debut until at least September after fracturing a metatarsal.

The midfielder accepts he has made mistakes but said: ''When you put things into context, in the real world with the things that are going on like wars, the things I've done are stupid and childish.

''It's stupidity on my behalf but they are not war crimes.

''Serious issues are going on and that's what gets me - when you're on the front page and page seven is about a soldier dying, or people in floods, the real tragedies and the real bad things in this world.

''It just baffles me. But this is the world we are in, this is the way our society has become. I'm not trying to defend myself, I'm a human being, I've made mistakes and a few of them.

''Footballers can get caught up in the fact that they are the centre of the universe when in the context of life, football is just a game.

''I'm a human being. I've made a lot of mistakes but I'm learning from them. I've been trying to lead a good life and be a good person.''