Glen Johnson: What does he bring to LFC? Time to cash-in before it's too late...

When Rafa Benitez signed Glen Johnson in 2009, I argued at the time that it was a mistake to spend such a large amount of money on a player that Liverpool (arguably) didn't need. Given the catastrophic failure of the two seasons he has been at Anfield, I'm struggling to see what specific, measurable impact Johnson has had on the team, and how he fits into the 'new' Liverpool under Kenny Dalglish.

Here are a few pertinent facts:

• 2009: In Johnson's first year, Liverpool had their worst league season since 1994 (In terms of league placing)


• 2008-9: Two league games were lost *all season*. Johnson arrived, and featured in 12 defeats in 35 games (over one third of all the games in which he appeared).
  
  
• Johnson's arrival coincided with the club's worst overall season (all competitions) in decades, which included failure to get out of the group stage of the CL; a horrible 7th place league finish (and the consequent failure to qualify for the CL)
  
  
• In two seasons, Liverpool has conceded 71 goals in 70 games with Johnson in the team, which equates to an average of one goal conceded every 1.1 games. It also equates to 67% of goals conceded overall.
  
  
• As a comparison: In the two years before Johnson arrived (2007-2009) the team conceded 96 goals in 114 games, which is an average of one goal conceded every 0.8 games.
  
  
• 2009-10: Despite Johnson's much-vaunted attacking prowess, he managed only 3 goals and 3 assists. Hardly surprising given that in the 7 years prior to joining Liverpool he averaged 1 goal and 2 assists a season.
  
  
• 2010-11: Two goals and 3 assists this time as Liverpool fail to qualify for the CL for the second time in a row.
  
  
• In two seasons for Liverpool, Johnson hasn't been able to beat his career-best figures for Portsmouth in 2008-9, where he got 3 goals and 6 assists in 37 games. Is this the level of return expected from an 18m player who is, apparently, 'amazing' going forward?
  
  
• 42 of Johnson's 70 appearances have ended in defeat or draw (24 defeats; 17 draws), which means the club wins only 42% of games with Johnson in the team.
  
  
• To put this in perspective, between 2007 and 2009, the team lost only 14 times in 114 games.

With these facts in mind, I seriously pose the question: How has Liverpool benefited from the signing of Glen Johnson?

• How has the 18m been worth it?


• What consistent, positive impact has Johnson had on the team?


• How has Liverpool's defence improved with Johnson in it?

There's no getting away from the fact that Liverpool has had two of its most miserable seasons in living memory since Johnson signed. From where I'm standing, the team loses more games, concedes more goals and generally fails to qualify for the Champions League with him in the team.

I think it's also worth nothing that Johnson arrived in the infamous summer of 2009, when Rafa Benitez sealed his fate with a summer of counter-productive transfer activity. It is no coincidence that only Johnson remains from the players bought during that fateful transfer period.

I don't see how Johnson fits into the 'new' Liverpool. Jose Enrique is the new first-choice left back, so Johnson will not be needed there, and we have Martin Kelly, John Flanagan and Martin Skrtel (if need be) to cover the right back position.

Liverpool should sell Johnson in January to the highest bidder IMO - the older he gets, the harder it will be to claw back the 18m originally spent on him.

Liverpool is doing great at the moment, and I fear that Johnson, with his regular goal-gifting errors, will once again destabilise the defence when he returns to the team.

24 defeats in two seasons is more than enough, surely?

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Jaimie Kanwar