DOES Joey Barton have a future with Rangers after being issued with a notice of complaint by the Scottish Football Association for allegedly breaching betting rules?

You wouldn’t put your mortgage on it.

The 34-year-old will, if found guilty of breaking strict anti-gambling regulations by placing 44 wagers on matches between July 1 and September 15, almost certainly be hit with a ban.

That is what happened when former Ibrox players Ian Black and Steve Simonsen both fell foul of the governing body for the same infractions previously.

Given that this accusation has been levelled at Barton while he was serving a three week suspension after a training ground bust-up in the wake of the 5-1 defeat to Celtic, his prospects don’t appear too bright.

The English midfielder could plead forgiveness for his impetuosity, seek to heal any rifts which have opened up between him and his team mates and the management, knuckle down in training, regain his fitness and form and prove what a fine player he is.

But you would get long odds with a bookmaker on that happening given his myriad fall-outs and feuds with authority previously in his professional career with Manchester City, Newcastle United, Queens Park Rangers.

However, regardless of what happens with Barton, who is scheduled to return to training at Auchenhowie on Monday, one thing is a certainty.

If he does depart, Rangers can survive and indeed thrive without him.

The wisdom of bringing in a player with such a chequered disciplinary record has been questioned almost from the minute Barton arrived at Ibrox.

He immediately hit the headlines by claiming that he would be the best player in Scotland this season and that Celtic captain Scott Brown wasn’t in his league.

He went on to declare that Brendan Rodgers, the Parkhead club’s new manager, was suffering from a mid-life crisis.

His remarks may well, as his manager Mark Warburton stressed, have been made with his tongue lodged firmly in his cheek.

But a Rangers player being so openly critical of the other half of the Old Firm, even if it was done humorously, was inadvisable.

The acquisition of Barton on a two year deal in May, though, made perfect sense on many levels for Rangers.

First of all, he had just enjoyed an exceptional season with Burnley. He had helped the Turf Moor club win promotion to the Barclays Premier League by lifting the Skybet Championship and been named in the PFA Team of the Year.

Bringing in an individual of his undoubted ability and vast experience was a smart move as the Ladbrokes Championship winners prepared to compete in the top flight for the first time in four long years.

On top of that, Barton was box office, a big name who had spent his career at big clubs, somebody who would excite the fans and boost season ticket sales.

After several difficult seasons in the lower leagues, the arrival of such a high-profile figure in Govan was greeted with widespread rejoicing by the legions of Light Blues supporters.

Yes, Barton has been disappointing, but he didn’t get a full pre-season under his belt. His play will, if his services are retained, improve in time. But it is highly doubtful he will get that chance.

Warburton, though, has enough quality players in midfield without him. Andy Halliday and Jason Holt were exceptional last season in that area and have shown they can more than cope with life in the Premiership in recent weeks.

Josh Windass, the Accrington Stanley player who so many in Scottish football sneered about when he signed a pre-contract agreement back in January, was outstanding in the Old Firm game at Parkhead last month.

According to reports from Lancashire, Matt Crooks, the holding midfielder who was Windass’s team mate at League Two club Stanley, is even better.

Crooks is back playing after recovering from an ankle ligament injury and made his long-awaited debut in the 5-0 defeat over Queen of the South in the Betfred Cup quarter-final last month.

Jordan Rossiter, the tough-tackling England Under-19 internationalist who arrived from Liverpool in the close season for a £250,000 development fee, is also an exciting prospect.

The 19-year-old is sidelined with a calf strain at the moment. But his pedigree has been clear to see in his appearances this term.

Niko Kranjcar, the former Spurs, Portsmouth and Croatia player, scored a fine goal in the 2-0 win over Partick Thistle at the weekend and was named Man of the Match at the end of the Premiership match.

The 32-year-old perhaps lacks the pace, energy and work rate of those around him, but, on the ball, it is not hard to see why he was brought to Glasgow.

Harry Forrester, meanwhile, hasn’t hit the heights that he scaled in the 2015/16 campaign in recent weeks, but he was out injured towards the end of last term and has shown his value to the team on numerous occasions since moving to Scotland.

If Barton does go, and that remains a big if, then Rangers will be well-placed without him.