Olympique Marseille chief Jose Anigo admits their deal for QPR midfielder Joey Barton was never planned.

Barton signed for Marseille on-loan for the season last week.

"This is the story of a marriage that was not planned," smiled Anigo.

"We went to London to discuss with QPR the transfer of Stéphane Mbia and Joe was there with his agent.

"In our discussion with him, he quickly explained his desire to play for Marseille. At first, we thought that it would not be financially feasible, but during the discussion, we saw that it was not a joke and that it could be done."