Chris Waddle has questioned why his former club Marseille have signed Joey Barton and has warned the controversial midfielder not to upset his new club's supporters. Barton joined Marseille at the end of August after being frozen out at Queens Park Rangers when he was suspended for 12 matches by the Football Association for two charges of violent conduct.

Barton is yet to make an appearance for Marseille in the league because of the ban and he has only played once in the Europa League, a 2-2 draw at Fenerbahce. He failed to impress though and was taken off after 71 minutes when Marseille were 2-0 down, taking no part in their late fightback. Waddle, who played for Marseille between 1989 and 1992, is perplexed.

"Unless someone's built him up into being Zinedine Zidane, I don't know how he got that move," Waddle, who is now a pundit for ESPN, said. "He'll do well to play football and if he's not playing, will Joey be happy? We'll probably find out on Twitter. It's a fantastic club with fanatical support and if he upsets the supporters he might as well leave town. I wouldn't bet against him upsetting the supporters.

"I don't see how Joey's different from what they've got. French football is fast and physical but it's very technical. It will be a great education for him. Whether he can accept not playing every week will be something to look out for."

Barton is set to make his home debut in the Europa League against Limassol on Thursday, but he has not been missed in the league. Marseille, who play Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday, are top of Ligue 1 with six wins in seven games. However Waddle did admit that Barton could thrive if he quickly settles in his new surroundings.

"In Marseille, it's one team, one town," Waddle said. "They're fanatics. Wherever you go, everyone's a Marseille fan. The supporters are unbelievable and in the town everybody just talks about Marseille. I think he'll enjoy that. If he plays well, they'll take to him."