by LFC2007 » Thu Aug 20, 2009 2:45 am
I can't say enough about the guy. If anyone doubted what a £17.5m right-back would add to our play against classic park the bus-ers just watch the game. He was sublime in his attacking capacity, and that performance was very much reminiscent of his performances for Pompey last season. What you saw there is what he's always been good at, he's just so much more refined these days in terms of his physique and consistency. His technique is practically flawless for a full-back. He receives the ball so easily, his passing is smooth and accurate, he can turn his marker, he can hold the ball up using his body strength (that's something he's really improved upon), he can float the ball into the box without any trouble, he can even make the deft pass. But what he's exceptional at, and what sets him apart from most other full-backs is his ability to go down the line or come inside using that burst of pace he has. Most fullbacks can go down the line and get the cross in, but it's a rare breed that can come inside with similar ease; with such pace, balance, strength and control.
Like the run into the box at Spurs, he was at it again against Stoke and it's particularly significant because it's MUCH harder to defend against if your opponent has the ability to go both ways with such ease, as Higginbotham found out. He could do you either way and by the time he's made that burst one side or t'other, as an opposing defender having to adjust your body to stay with him is very hard, especially if there's nobdoy covering you; something more likely to be the case in the latter stages of games or when the play's been switched quickly. Tired defenders will get mauled by this guy.
I used to play as a full-back, more in the Finnan mould though, and I was happy to see the winger down the line (which is essentially what Johnson is/will be in these types of games) and that was just conventional play, but when you throw in this other dimension - the ability to go one way or the other, and with ease - you're exposed to getting turned inside out (I used to dread the thought of them coming inside - you want the usual down the line try and block the cross drill), and adjusting is hard, but to pacey, powerful players like Johnson it's a nightmare. By the time you've adjusted your body to shadow him the other way he'll likely be past you, and such differences are crucial at the highest level. That extra yard throws a stubborn defence open to another kind of attack - a penetrating threat deriving from out wide, and for us I think it will prove to be crucial. Finnan couldn't do it, though he could cross well enough. Arbeloa was a little better in that capacity, but Johnson's in a different stratosphere in this respect; in any attacking respect for that matter. Tonight served as emphatic evidence of that. From a full-back's perspective you don't get much better than that tonight. He was a consistent and direct threat in a number of capacities - from his crossing to his penetrating runs, all beside his general play in which he was a comfortable, assured option throughout. He got the goal, an assist and a made an important covering interception at 2-0. Naturally gifted just about sums him up.
His natural athleticism, his (fairly good) aerial ability, a great attitude are some of his other attributes.
