Emerging talent has the world at his feet

BRENNAN JOHNSON HAS WORLD AT HIS FEET

NOTTINGHAM FOREST WINGER

By Chris Dunlavy

PLAYER PROFILE

WHAT A FEELING: Brennan Johnson celebrates scoring for Nottingham Forest in their thumping 4-1 win against Leicester last Sunday and, below, on loan at Lincoln

PICTURE: Alamy

BRENTFORD are famously canny operators in the transfer market, but the Premier League side dropped the ball when it comes to Brennan Johnson.

Boss Thomas Frank and the Bees‘ recruitment team wanted to sign the Nottingham Forest winger in August, but baulked at what they believed was an excessive £18m asking price for a young player whose contract expires next summer.

By the time they returned in January, fully prepared to cough up, the 20-year-old had blossomed into a star, with seven goals and six assists making him indispensable to a Forest side in pursuit of the play-offs.

Last weekend’s starring role in the 4-1 FA Cup demolition of Leicester only underlines what a costly mistake Brentford made. He scored his eighth goal of the campaign with a cheeky nutmeg and showed similar impudence in driving an experienced Foxes defence to distraction.

“Outstanding,” said BBC pundit Martin Keown. “His involvement, pace and intelligence. He is ready-made for the Premier League.”

Indeed. Johnson now looks like a bargain at £18m and, by the summer, bigger beasts than Brentford will be in the hunt. Newcastle have lodged an interest, and if that is followed by a concrete offer then nobody has the nition to compete.

It is a rapid but far from unexpecteded rise for a player who, as recently as last season, was on loan at League One side Lincoln.

A versatile attacking player, Johnson is the son of former Forest and Ipswich forward David Johnson, who played at the City Ground between 2001 and 2006. He joined Forest’s academy set-up at the age of eight and was tipped for stardom throughout a goal-laden youth career.

One man who took particular note was Gareth Southgate, for whom Johnson’s decision to declare for Wales – after two years in the England youth ranks – was a source of considerable regret.

Ability

Johnson’s first-team debut came in August 2019, but it was at Sincil Bank where his ability came to the fore.

Playing in a variety of attacking positions, he scored 13 goals, assisted five and earned seven penalties as the Imps reached the play-off final under Michael Appleton.

He also won the first of seven full caps for Wales so far, standing in for Gareth Bale in a 5-1 victory over Belarus.

“Brennan has ful- filled the potential we knew he had and, as far as I’m concerned, he can comfortably go and play at Championship level,” said Appleton.

So it has proved, particularly un- der Steve Coo- per. Whilst Johnson performed capably under the conservative Chris Hughton, the arrival of Cooper and his switch to a 4-2-3-1 system has liberated the attacker, who – as many predicted in his teenage years – is now thriving as a wide forward. Pacy, direct and proficient off both feet, he is a nightmare for full-backs.

Statistically, Johnson is unremarkable. He dribbles relatively rarely for a wide player, with a figure of 2.3 per game ranking him 21st amongst Championship midfielders.

And whilst he is second amongst Forest players for shots per game with 1.8 (behind Philip Zinckernagel), Johnson places 24th when compared with other attacking midfielders in the division.

Output

When it comes to actual output, however, Johnson excels. His goals and assists rank sixth and fourth respectively among players in his position, with his eight strikes coming against an xG of just 6.1. Johnson is a player who maximises opportunities; this, combined with his intelligence, skilful movement across the forward line, positional versatility and the explosive nature of his development, is what has attracted so much interest from top-flight sides.

“Brennan is a player made for the Premier League,” said Forest’s long-serving academy director Gary Brazil. “He is an exciting talent, with the potential to be an elite player at club and international level.”