ALLY MCCOIST reckons Joey Barton’s character was never going to fit into the Rangers dressing room this season.

The midfielder brought the curtain down on a tumultuous Ibrox career last week as he accepted a £250,000 pay-off to terminate his Light Blues deal.

Barton made just eight appearances for Mark Warburton’s side before a training ground bust-up with the Gers boss saw him suspended for several weeks.

The Englishman has been involved in a number of incidents on and off the park throughout his controversial career and is now set to return south of the border in January.

Read more: Ally McCoist wouldn't be shocked if Rangers don't finish second in the Premiership

McCoist said: “It’s not a criticism of the boys playing just now, but in my time, and in the dressing rooms I was involved in, you had nine or ten strong characters.

“I don’t think any dressing room in the country is like that nowadays, not just the Rangers dressing room.

“In those days if a situation arose it was sorted out and you moved on.

“We had big names, guys you wanted to stand beside, go for a pint with it. We had fall outs but it was sorted and we moved on.

Read more: Ally McCoist wouldn't be shocked if Rangers don't finish second in the Premiership

“I don’t know Joey Barton at all. But I just think perhaps his character wasn’t suited to that dressing room. I might be wrong because like I say I don’t know the lad at all, that’s just my observation.

“I played with guys who had real personalities and I don’t think that’s the case in football these days.”