Liverpool fans have been calling for Glen Johnson to be played on the right wing ever since he arrived at Anfield, and his excellent winning goal against Chelsea last week is a prime example of he type of impact the former Chelsea man could have in that position. What does Johnson himself think about the possibility?
Playing Johnson on the right seems like a no-brainer, especially given his defensive frailties at right back, but Rafa Benitez, Roy Hodgson and Kenny Dalglish have all stopped-short of giving it a try.
However, when asked about it yesterday, Johnson was very positive about the possibility:
"I think a lot of people have been mentioning that [playing on the right] recently, but it's obviously not for me to say.
"I get played at right back so I try and do a job for the team, but if I'm asked to play further forward then obviously I'd be more than happy too".
Reading between the lines, it sounds to me like Johnson would actually prefer to play on the right wing; look at his language: I 'get played' at right back (i.e. he does what he's told), and I 'try to do a job' for the team.
Compare that to the positive response to playing forward: 'I'd be more than happy to play further forward'.
Johnson will almost definitely be in the starting XI against Man City, and he's confident Liverpool can win the game:
"They're a fantastic team but I don't see any reason why we can't win".
Given the depth of City's attacking options, Liverpool will (IMO) have more chance of winning if Johnson plays on the right wing, and not at right back *shudder*
Jaimie Kanwar
Playing Johnson on the right seems like a no-brainer, especially given his defensive frailties at right back, but Rafa Benitez, Roy Hodgson and Kenny Dalglish have all stopped-short of giving it a try.
However, when asked about it yesterday, Johnson was very positive about the possibility:
"I think a lot of people have been mentioning that [playing on the right] recently, but it's obviously not for me to say.
"I get played at right back so I try and do a job for the team, but if I'm asked to play further forward then obviously I'd be more than happy too".
Reading between the lines, it sounds to me like Johnson would actually prefer to play on the right wing; look at his language: I 'get played' at right back (i.e. he does what he's told), and I 'try to do a job' for the team.
Compare that to the positive response to playing forward: 'I'd be more than happy to play further forward'.
Johnson will almost definitely be in the starting XI against Man City, and he's confident Liverpool can win the game:
"They're a fantastic team but I don't see any reason why we can't win".
Given the depth of City's attacking options, Liverpool will (IMO) have more chance of winning if Johnson plays on the right wing, and not at right back *shudder*
Jaimie Kanwar
Maybe, but dont you think he will be thinking of his England place at RB?
ReplyDeleteMartin Kelly has always been solid at Right Back wheh he has played even though he is a Centre Back. Johnson and Kelly on the right would be a perfect compliment but as you say we have been mentioning it for a few seasons now but it has never happened. Maybe with Kuyt no longer being a regular it is more of a possibility, but I doubt Kenny will ever go for it unless we have lots of injuries.
ReplyDeleteHe would screw himself with England. No brainer.
ReplyDeleteabsolutely! with young kelly behind him, it could be frightening!
ReplyDeleteNot the right time to try something like that now unless injuries to key players. We have srength in depth.
ReplyDeleteI think you could try him on the wing now and then, but there's more to being a right winger than just running up and down the wing, and if your playing 442 you need to know when to tuck in to help in the middle. weather johnson has theses qualities is yet to be seen.
ReplyDeleteI always wanted to see him playing at right wing under rafa, woy and now kenny but never seen that, glen got abilities of going forward but hes poor defensively so why not playing him at wings and we could use kelly as right back whos better than johnson in that position, I just dont understand why not a single manager does it, at least just try it once wont cost us anything, Im sure that would be a better choice for both glen and kelly.
ReplyDeleteJK, Do you still want Johnson sold? Or did you go potty when he scored at the Bridge last week?
ReplyDeleteStill the question remains...
ReplyDeleteWhy has Johnson not been tried on the right wing???
Just a summary of his stats since he joined LFC in 2006.
06/07 - 0 goals, 2 assists
07/08 - 1 goal, 4 assists
08/09 - 3 goals, 4 assists
09/10 - 3 goals, 5 assists
10/11 - 2 goals, 2 assists
In five seasons excluding the current one he has scored 9 goals average of 1.8 goals per season and 17 assists average of 3.4 per season.
It is clear that GJ is an attacking player and surely if moved further upfield on the right wing he will increase the above stats as his main priority would be to ATTACK. So why on earth are we still playing him in a position where his attacking abilty is being wasted.
Kelly at RB and Johnson on the RW? Sounds good to me!
If he moves to right wing, keep him. If he's going to stay t RB, sell him. Scoring one goal doesn't hang the the fact Johnson is a defensive accident waiting to happen.
ReplyDeleteI think there are better prospects coming through the ranks who have attacking flair but will be better defensively. If anything I think he's got less competition as a winger.
ReplyDeletethe main obstacle for me was the england position that he might lose. it also shouldn't be forgotten that last season glen played left back for quite a run and he took it like a champ. i think it would be sensational to have him and kelly being able to link up down the right side. it's an option i would love to see us have the courage to try against some of the weaker teams at home.maybe try him out for 20-30mins
ReplyDeleteWhat would LFC gain by selling Glen Johnson? I can see some points that his defending is not world class but the criticism the lad gets is way Over the top
ReplyDeleteI would like to see GJ experimented as a winger to see if he can adapt, just because he has good attacking qualities(Quick, 2 good feet, good crosser, good striker of a ball etc) does not mean he willl make a good winger, his goal vs Chelase was all to do with his starting position, started deep, as soon as Adam was in possession he burst into space to receive the pass, if he was playing out wide midfield he would have been tucking inside at that time and is his passing and touch good enough in tight situations, at full back you get so much more time and space you can see the whole picture of the play.
i feel Johnson is not as suspect as others make him out to be, as for an accident waiting to happen, possibly but cannot remember any goals this season as a direct result for his defensive inadequacy.
Incidently, i hear so often Martin kelly mentioned, the lad has got massive potential but no where near ready to start as a regular, bed him in correctly and we may have a future England Centre Half!!
Again, I am wondering who we could sign as a better alternative attacking right back to GJ? What's worse, we could have Tony Hibbert bombing down our right wing and crossing straight into the Anfield Road stand!!!
It's wrong to assume that a good attacking full back will be successful if moved higher up the pitch. In my view it's easier for a defender to beat his man given that there's an element of surprise with each venture. If you play further forward your direct opponents are set up to stop you and that makes the task considerably more difficult.
ReplyDeleteMaybe all these managers are afraid of trying something new. They just don`t want to take any risks. Playing it safe again. But they should know better that nothing ventured nothing gained. In theory it looks very promising having kelly at right back and johnson at right wing. They complement each other well as one is better in attackng while the other is better at defending. They can even interchange at times during a match. Glen can cover for kelly when he goes forward. However theres no way to know if its gonna work on the pitch. The only way to know is to just try it...
ReplyDeleteTrue, Johnson would not make it as a winger. Simply put, he is not good enough!
ReplyDeleteAs a defender Johnson is not good enough. Attacking wise he can dribble, can cream defenders, has an eye for goal, can cross and his control and touch is also very good. These are all the qualities of a true winger.
ReplyDeleteKelly for me is by far the better option at RB at the moment. He also overlaps the winger which is why people prefer Johnson at RB? Most importantly is that Kelly is the better defender. The combination of Kelly and Johnson down the right I feel will be devastatingly good. I just cannot understand why we have not tried it yet.
Last season against Chelsea we played 3 CB's with Johnson as a wing back which means he was further upfield and caused alot of problems, more than what he normally does in his RB position...
Seriously, Johnson could be the answer to the right side of midfield.
Fact is that Kuyt has been riding his luck for far to long now, his form has dropped on a massive scale and his work rate is just not cutting it anymore and I am pretty damn sure Johnson will make Kuyt look amature down the right of midfield.
Moving Gareth Bale from LB to the left wing has worked wonders for Spurs.
ReplyDeleteAnd to suggest Kelly is not ready to be a starter is ridiculous. He has played almost 40 league games for us and proven his class and consistency. Kelly is wasted on the bench, while Johnson could hardly be less effective on the wing than Jordan Henderson has been this season.
i dont think there is an attacking fullback in the EPL, as good as GJ or Mica Richards that doesnt have defending issues. The same can be said for Dani Alves. He has great attacking qualities but lack in his defensive duties. And why sell GJ? what would that solve? LFC will only lose out on that deal. What LFC do need though, is a creative midfielder with the qualities of Mata or Silva.
ReplyDeleteJust a summary of his stats since he joined LFC in 2006. Glenn joined livpool in 2009 so where are all this stats coming from?? get ur facts right they never met with Alonso wher he would b gettin those superb long balls on regular basis n i thinmk 3 managers cant b wrong playing him at RB ..n hell i love him p[layin there coz he gives us more attackin options from the back
ReplyDeleteJose Enrique and Ashley Cole! Prior to this season, Patrice Evra too.
ReplyDelete