Bradley Johnson: a throwback to a different era

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Hi all, here''s my latest blog. It''s about Bradley Johnson and why coaching in English football should have stopped producing players like him a long time ago (although, before some jump in, this is NOT a dig at Johnson). I''ve also just noticed his merits are being debated on another thread but I wrote this last night so too late to change! Here it is ...In 1955, a book called Soccer Revolution was published. It was

written by Willy Meisl, the brother of Hugo Meisl, coach of the Austrian

national side that dominated football in the early 1930s. Willy was an

anglophile who lived in London and, after watching England’s famous 6-3

defeat to Hungary, he wanted his adopted country to return to its former

glories. So he wrote Soccer Revolution, which bemoans

England’s inability to play neat passing football, favouring “safety

first” and “speed at all costs” over possession. He wrote that “after

the war crowds began to yell: ‘Get rid of it!’ when a player tried to

get the ball under possession and do something sensible about it.”He

went on: “Isolation, insularism, obstinate resistance to any reforms,

refusal to break with outdated methods from training to tactics, from

selecting internationals to educating talent, has put us 10 years

behind.” All of this written 58 years ago. It could, of course, still be

written today. Imagine if, six decades on, Willy could time

travel to Carrow Road. What would he make of Bradley Johnson? He has the

tattoos, the hair, the beard: all the hallmarks of a metrosexual,

millionaire, modern-day footballer. See him play, however, and Wily

would wonder if Johnson had time-travelled with him. For Johnson

is a throwback, joining a long line of battle-hardened British

midfielders, from Nobby Stiles to and Billy Bremner to Carlton Palmer

and David Batty, who were very good at stopping other people being good

at football. Lots of brawn but not always a lot of brain. The

fashion has changed, though. Players like Patrick Viera showed the

Premier League that defensive midfielders could be both bad cop and good

cop – intimidating opponents one second, playing a clever inch-perfect

pass the next. Now they’re everywhere: Sergio Busquets, Xavi Alonso,

Sebastian Schweinsteiger, Sami Khedira, Esteban Cambiasso, Javier

Mascherano, Daniele De Rossi, Arturo Vidal, Blaise Matuidi, Yaya Toure,

(Leroy Fer …). They’re taking over the world, second only in importance

to a quality striker. This leaves little room these days for the

old-fashioned defensive midfielder who are restricted in attack –

unless, of course, they are English. It says a lot about how English

football still lags behind the rest of the world when it comes to

producing players who treat the ball as a friend, not something to beat

the crap out of.It’s not too much of a leap to suggest that

England will never win a World Cup while players like Johnson and Scott

Parker are still playing for Premier League clubs. They remain proof

that the English set-up is still flawed. This isn’t a dig at

Johnson. His commitment on the pitch is inspiring and, at his most

effective, he snuffs out the threat of buzzy no.10s or attacking

midfielders, allowing the defence to play a high line. Norwich didn’t

get split open too often last season, and much of that was down to the

relentless pressing work by Johnson.He is the team''s duster,

sweeping up attacks. The problem is, dust always comes back. And this is

where Johnson falls short. Because his passing is so poor, he

immediately loses possession, allowing the opposition to attack again.

He''s caught in a nightmarish loop: breaking up attacks, giving the ball

back, breaking up attacks, giving the ball back. It’s like trying to

fill a bath while the plug isn’t in.It’s not his fault though.

He undoubtedly spends hours on the training pitch attempting to improve

those skills and we shouldn’t begrudge him his place in the Premier

League. He is merely a product of an English culture and system that has

been outmoded for decades.The one truly world-class holding

midfielder England have possessed in the last decade, Owen Hargreaves,

received all of his football education abroad. When the far-more limited

Parker won the FWA Footballer of the Year award in 2010-11 it was a

depressing indictment of English football. All-too-predictably,

the dynamic Italian midfield tore Parker apart at Euro 2012. The same

had happened to Gareth Barry against Germany in the 2010 World Cup. They

were both gormless pugs among cunning foxes. Sure, they would often win

the ball. But then they would give it straight back, stuck in the same

loop as Johnson. We can’t really blame Roy Hodgson though, for

he has to select from what’s on offer. It goes back to how English kids

are coached, where a defensive, unenterprising culture still exists,

where ball-winning is considered more important than ball-retention. As

Willy Meisl’s book shows, it is a culture that has lasted for 60 years.There

are signs of improvements. Five decades too late, the FA have finally

listened to Willy Meisl and are endeavouring to revolutionise the

coaching of the country’s young footballers. Twelve years after his

England debut Michael Carrick is finally getting the starts he deserves

while Jack Wilshere, Jack Rodwell, Tom Cleverley and Tottenham’s Tom

Carroll show that skillful midfielders who can attack as well as they

can retain are finally coming through in decent numbers. If you ever

play five-a-side against teenagers, their touch skills are better than a

decade ago, surely a product of watching the world’s best international

players in the Premier League. So perhaps we should enjoy

players like Bradley Johnson while we still can, wholehearted

footballers with flaws who don’t play like they’ve been formed

ready-made in a test tube. But let’s not kid ourselves that they’ll be

missed for too long. A Premier League without the likes of Bradley

Johnson may not be as colourful but it would be for the good of the

English game. Daniel Brigham is features editor of The Cricketer magazineFollow him on Twitter: @cricketer_dan

[PurpleCanary 5,554]

Ah, the Meisl brothers and the Viennese Whirl of the 1930s, intellectual forerunner of Total Football.

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Yep. The Willy Whirl. Always makes me chuckle.

[Yelloow Since 72 54]

Interesting discussion, but I think people get carried away saying that BJ can''t pass, when he completes more than 2 out of every 3 passes whilst under severe pressure much of the time. I''m hoping that Fer provides the outlet BJ needs to avoid giving it away that 1 time out of 3. Fer can be the fox to BJ''s ''bulldog'', whilst still being robust in the tackle as well.

[PurpleCanary 5,554]

[quote user="Daniel Brigham"]Yep. The Willy Whirl. Always makes me chuckle.[/quote]

 

Only the Viennese, with their craving for chocolate, would call a football system The Whirl.

[Syteanric 1]

Pilkingtons hair is a throw back to a different Era..

1942 called, they want their quif back.

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Hi Yelloow. I''m a fan of Johnson''s defensive work, but I do think he holds Norwich back sometimes. Losing possession 33% of the time isn''t a great stat ... Personally would like to see Fer and Howson together.

[ZLF 271]

[quote user="Yelloow Since 72"]Interesting discussion, but I think people get carried away saying that BJ can''t pass, when he completes more than 2 out of every 3 passes whilst under severe pressure much of the time. I''m hoping that Fer provides the outlet BJ needs to avoid giving it away that 1 time out of 3. Fer can be the fox to BJ''s ''bulldog'', whilst still being robust in the tackle as well.[/quote]

 

You can see on match day that passing is not BJ strength;   he is not just the worst at the club but was the worst central midfielder in the prem.   I dont buy that he is under pressure more than howson or tettey either.   BJ did not win the ball back more than he passed it away (in fact his disruption element is the best at the club,  but not by much but just average in prem terms).  His passion and enthusiasm are what we love (I would give that)

 

We need better next season (no team will consistently do well giving the ball away with 3 passes out of 10)   but it was all three centre mids that need to improve,  not just BJ.    We love BJs effort that means he plays at his peak each game,  its just we need more than that to be able to create - Tettey and Howson need to play to their peak as consistently as BJ does - they did not last season and for me thats why our centre mid was too soft last season.  

[Salopian 1]

Technically Johnson is limited, blasting the ball high and wide when shooting at goal and lacking any sort of touch in his passing (- he doesn''t fit in the quick pass and move method).

 

What you have is a very fit player who covers miles in the course of a match, and one who is a no-nonsense committed team member. He is brave and tackles hard..This may make him unsophisticated, effective in a one-on-one situation but floundering when two opponents approach him with rapid passing.

 

Traditionally, English and British football has produced endeavour and commitment, with rather less emphasis on ball skills, with physical contest making for excitement. Continentals seem to have caught up with us in the physical, even if it is a discreet hand in the back or shirt pulling on the blind side of the Ref. To some extent we have caught up in ball skills - juggling, etc., and above all control of the ball. So I would have to agree that some extent Johnson is reminiscent of players 50 or so years ago, when pace and dribbling were the things which gave an advantage.

 

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Interestingly Salopian Willy Meisl''s book talks about shirt-pulling and diving in English football, often thought to be done by ''continental types''. Seems it was very much ingrained in British footballing culture in the 50s.

[CDMullins 436]

Stopped reading at this line

"he problem is, dust always comes back. And this is where Johnson falls short. Because his passing is so poor, he immediately loses possession"

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

[quote user="CDMullins"]Stopped reading at this line "he problem is, dust always comes back. And this is where Johnson falls short. Because his passing is so poor, he immediately loses possession"[/quote]

 

As Johnson has a passing accuracy of 71% (I believe one of the lowest for a central midfielder in the league) I think that is a fair statement. Especially when compared to Tettey who has an accuracy of around 84% which is about average for a player in that position.

 

I don''t like to use stats a lot as they don''t always show the whole story, but in this case it does show that slight less than 1 out of every 3 passes Johnson makes goes to the opposing team - for a defensive midfielder that is very poor.

 

[Yelloow Since 72 54]

Last season Johnson was a virtual ever-present in the lineup, but with Fer available now Johnson is only one of 3 options to play alongside him. Playing big teams, especially away from home, he may still be first choice but there will be a lot of games where Howson will join Fer in a more attacking midfield. IMO, Tettey is somewhere in-between, but Fer will be the key player this year.

[Daniel Brigham 0]

CDMullins - can I ask why?

[chicken 0]

I think we have been here many times before.

People suggesting Tettey is a better passer of the ball than Johnson, and that Johnson is just outright terrible at passing.

A good point has already been made and lost about Johnson coming under pressure a lot and I think perhaps mistaken.

The way I saw it last season is thus. Tettey, in terms of passing, is incredibly unadventurous. He looks for the five yard balls, the safe and easy balls. And whilst this makes for good pass completion stats it does not tell the whole story. The fact is he often slowed down attacks for often seeming unwilling to try something a little bit more adventurous.

Therefore Johnson, last season, appeared to be the one that felt pressured into making more adventurous passes, the riskier passes. He isn''t actually as bad as people think, just that if we wanted the ball to go forward from central midfield he was more often than not the one that did it and again, more often than not was in receipt of a poor pass from which to play a decent ball forward.

I agree with the sentiment that he will improve with Fer alongside him as it means that he knows he isn''t the only ''out ball'' available in the middle anymore - at least not in the holding roles in midfield.

That said, both him and Tettey have looked much more improved in pre season.

[Legend Iwan 30]

Johnson passed, on average, 4 metres (22m) more than Tettey (18m).

[Daniel Brigham 0]

I don''t get that ''coming under pressure'' is a valid excuse for poor passing.

Simply, if you''re a central midfielder in the Premier League then you should be good enough to pass accurately under pressure. It''s one of the most vital components of being a central midfielder.

[CDMullins 436]

[quote user="Daniel Brigham"]CDMullins - can I ask why?[/quote]

I believe it to be very disrespectful and untrue

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Fair enough to believe to be untrue, we all hold different opinions. But it''s not disrespectful to suggest Johnson is poor at passing - it''s not a personal attack on him. It''s an opinion based on watching him for two years.

[damn that Ralph Coates! 47]

did anyone say he''s pretty useful in the air?

[ricardo 7,339]

I always smile when I see people underrate Bradley Johnson. Anyone can get their pass percentage up if they do a "Ray Wilkins" with a safe pass sideways. There''s more than a few who always play the percentages with a nothing pass that puts absolutely no pressure on the opposition. There is far more to football than dominating possession.I''m more than happy with Johno, he cost nothing and has been the backbone of the side for the past couple of years. Carry on son, some of us appreciate your contributuion.

[im spartacus canary 0]

Agreed ricardo this Brigham bloke is clueless [:D]

[damn that Ralph Coates! 47]

he put it away twice, and so clearly turned out to be the difference between the two sides today......

[lappinitup 629]

[quote user="ricardo"]I''m more than happy with Johno, he cost nothing and has been the backbone of the side for the past couple of years. Carry on son, some of us appreciate your contributuion.[/quote]Right on Ricky. Your knowledge of the game is through watching it over the years (and understanding it) rather than relying on computer games, TV pundits and statisticians. Long may you bring commonsense to this board. [;)]

[ricardo 7,339]

[quote user="lappinitup"][quote user="ricardo"]I''m more than happy with Johno, he cost nothing and has been the backbone of the side for the past couple of years. Carry on son, some of us appreciate your contributuion.[/quote]Right on Ricky. Your knowledge of the game is through watching it over the years (and understanding it) rather than relying on computer games, TV pundits and statisticians. Long may you bring commonsense to this board. [;)][/quote]Thanks Lapp.Do we really want to see a game where teams are so technically brilliant that they never lose possession until they score. The game would finish up like Basketball where teams virtually alternate scoring until the final whistle. I admit that it''s a bit of an over simplification but I''m sure you know what I mean.Yes, passing is a weakness in Johno''s game but very few players are perfect in all aspects of the game. It''s a bit like criticizing Wes for overdoing it on occasions. Yes, he is often caught in possession but those flashes of magic make up for all that in my opinion. I do not want to watch a match where over coached automatons take the soul out of the game. Long live mistakes and flashes of genius, without them there would be no point to football.

[Daniel Brigham 0]

Ha, I was expecting this. As I said it wasn''t a personal attack, he''s very good at breaking up attacks. I admire his work rate. Not sure how what he did today is relevant to the piece though.

And you''re right, it would be nice if football wasn''t ALL about possession. But that''s how it''s going at the moment, and what everyone rightly moans about when England constantly give the ball away.

[lappinitup 629]

[quote user="ricardo"]Thanks Lapp.Do we really want to see a game where teams are so technically brilliant that they never lose possession until they score. The game would finish up like Basketball where teams virtually alternate scoring until the final whistle. I admit that it''s a bit of an over simplification but I''m sure you know what I mean.Yes, passing is a weakness in Johno''s game but very few players are perfect in all aspects of the game. It''s a bit like criticizing Wes for overdoing it on occasions. Yes, he is often caught in possession but those flashes of magic make up for all that in my opinion. I do not want to watch a match where over coached automatons take the soul out of the game. Long live mistakes and flashes of genius, without them there would be no point to football.[/quote]I wonder what today''s fans would make of players like Duncan Forbes. A true Norwich legend who I feel would be torn apart these days. Even Ian Crook didn''t get every pass on target and wasn''t known for his tackling. Good job slow motion wasn''t about much then, they''d be legends no more.

[Gingerpele 0]

Good to see someone as knowledgable and logical as Ricardo rates Johnson. No player will ever have everyone on their side, look at the best two in the world. Both have plenty trying to belittle them for one reason or another.

Johnson isn''t a perfect player. But he was key to our 11th place finish last season, and I''m fairly confidant he will be key again this season, but will be overshadowed by at least a couple of the new arrivals. He may not be a regular, and will always be open to critics because of how he plays. But I''m still adamant he''s much better than many give him credit for, and Hughton rates him highly.

[Scooby 0]

Well Mr Brigham. I hope you were at the game today. Not only 2 superbly taken goals but for the most part Young Bradley had us ticking. Playing probably more forward of Tettey he was everywhere and I have to say his passing was way way better than last year, perhaps someone has helped him pre season? Easily the best and most dominant player on the park today with the usual steel combined with some lovely intricate passing combinations.

Suffice to say Mr Brigham that, if this is the new improved Bradley Johnson, I hope he requests that you print off your OP and, together with a large dose of humble pie, shove it down your throat.

No one ever said that a player cannot learn and improve himself.

[ricardo 7,339]

[quote user="Daniel Brigham"]Ha, I was expecting this. As I said it wasn''t a personal attack, he''s very good at breaking up attacks. I admire his work rate. Not sure how what he did today is relevant to the piece though.

And you''re right, it would be nice if football wasn''t ALL about possession. But that''s how it''s going at the moment, and what everyone rightly moans about when England constantly give the ball away.[/quote]Nobody is arguing that the technical side is not open to improvement Daniel but I would still strongly argue that possession is not the be all and end all of the game. The only thing that matters in football is the result and that is determined by scoring goals. Yes, we can enjoy a closely fought nil nil but it''s the goals that we go for. Football is a bit like evolution where formations and tactics become successful until defences find ways to combat them. This tic tac stuff may be in it''s ascendancy at the moment but no style or tactic is forever. The football today is nothing like it was in the 50''s and 60''s.There is no single perfect way to play football and never will be. Players will always have different qualities and should be appreciated for those that they excel in. Thankfully genius cannot be coached into a player. If football ever loses that glorious uncertainty then it loses the best part of it''s soul.