JOEY Barton believes Newcastle are at their best when staring in the face of adversity.

The club was again in the spotlight last week for all the wrong reasons when striker Andy Carroll was bailed for assault.

But the midfielder, who was inspirational during United’s deserved 2-1 victory at West Ham, insists the club can deal with all the pressure and media scrutiny.

“This is a football team which sort of thrives when our backs are against the wall,”

said the 28-year-old midfield schemer. “There has been a lot of water under the bridge this week, more than any other.

Newcastle is a high intensity football environment and there is no escaping the media spotlight.

All we can do is do what we do best – play football.

“We had a little bit of a ropey 15 or 20 minutes at the start but we got back into the game and showed an enormous amount of character and team spirit to win at a very tough place to come.”

It’s been a tough week for manager Chris Hughton too. In some quarters it was suggested that he was in danger of losing his job.

When asked if Barton was aware of any pressure on his manager he slammed the rumour.

“I’m aware of what has gone on this week, but I’m not aware of anything about the manager,”

said a surprised Barton.

“In my opinion, it’s ridiculous if there has been any speculation about his future. It’s the industry we are in, unfortunately.

“The job Chris has done in taking the club from the point of oblivion to where we are now shows how farcical the speculation can be at times.

“There was never any pressure felt inside the camp. We were all pulling in the same direction.

“We have a massive team spirit, the likes of which I’ve never experienced at a football club before and that shows on the pitch.

“We have gone 1-0 down away from home and I think the statistics show, 80 per cent of the time that happens you either lose or draw.

“We gave Wigan a two-goal start last week and clawed it back and we’ve given West Ham a goal and beaten them.

“It is frustrating we keep giving goals away, but it just strengthens the spirit when we come back.

“We have that togetherness and that camaraderie.

“Everything that has gone on this week, that little bit of pressure that was created, it didn’t matter.

“The person responsible shall go nameless, but I’m not one to comment. I’ve been guilty of it in the past.”

“It is part and parcel of the job,” added Hughton. “It’s a results- based business.

“Sometimes it is unfair but that is the nature of the game.

“No matter what position we were in before the game or after the game, I just have to do the very best job I can and get the best results I can. It is for others to talk and take action."