Everton caretaker boss David Unsworth has insisted that he "could not care less" about Joey Barton's jibes after having his coaching credentials questioned.

Barton suggested in a talkSPORT interview that the 44-year-old is merely a "glorified PE teacher" who is not qualified to manage a club of the Toffees' stature.

Unsworth was unwilling to bite when asked to comment on the remarks, but he did admit that the performance of his players in the 2-0 defeat to Leicester City on Sunday afternoon was simply not good enough at times.

"It's not a problem what Joey Barton says - I couldn't care less," he told Sky Sports News. "Today's first half was not acceptable but we reacted and dominated without getting the result our performance justified.

"I'll pick teams which I think will win any game of football. But it doesn't matter on reputation or value on that player."

Unsworth has now lost both games in temporary charge of Everton, as club chiefs continue to deliberate over a long-term successor to Ronald Koeman.