Joey Barton says Fleetwood Town have nothing to lose against Hull City - 'and that makes us dangerous'

Fleetwood host Grant McCann’s men in front of the Sky cameras (7.45) and the sides have made contrasting starts: Town have lost their last three league games, while Hull have won all four and are yet to concede a goal.

Town did win last time out, beating Aston Villa Under-21s 3-0 in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday.

That was with a much-changed side, though young players have been a regular feature of Barton’s senior team so far this season.

And the head coach sees tonight’s test as an opportunity for his side. He said: “It’s a great game, it’s one of the bigger teams in the division.

“I don’t think we have anything to lose. We’ll go out there and will have some of the younger lads playing.

“I’m absolutely confident after being around the boys that we’re good to go.

“Grant’s got a good side on his hands there and we know we’re going to have to be on the money. They’ve had a good start to the campaign but we’ve got nothing to lose.

“If I had my strongest side out, it’s a game you’d look at and think we might expect to win, but at this time we have absolutely nothing to lose. That makes us dangerous.”

The Humbersiders’ visit brings a familiar face back to the Fylde coast. Lewie Coyle left Town for the KCOM Stadium in a summer deal worth almost £400,000.

Barton cannot wait to see the right- back, who played over 100 times for the Highbury club.

“Lewie’s someone we’re all fond of,” he said. “He’s been a great servant to the club and he’s been a big loss for us, not only as a player but as a character. He’s an outstanding person.

“He’s a great lad and we were disappointed to lose him but that’s the nature of the industry. Hopefully we can take points off them and catch up with Lewie after. He’s a friend for life for a lot of us here and I’m really looking forward to having a catch-up.

“You don’t want to lose a character like Lewie. He’s tough to replace, never mind his ability on the pitch. There are not many like him – he’s a top professional.

“You have to accept the reality and Hull are a bigger club than us, with a financial package that worked for everybody.

“He’s from Hull and he decided to make that call. You think of the hard yards he’d done for us as a club and you respect that decision.

“Coyley hasn’t got in their team yet, so I’ll have a chat with him and see if he fancies coming back!”