Tag: FA Cup

Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson is a future Premier League star

Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson is a future Premier League star

Nottingham Forest fans are daring to dream.

Sunday’s extraordinary 4-1 FA Cup fourth round win over Leicester City in a raucous City ground certainly wasn’t just about progress to the next round but about endless possibilities, and a marker as to where Steve Cooper can take this impressively-built and talented group of players.

It was an afternoon packed full of emotion, celebration and no little drama — and one that only delivered another bucket-full of encouragement for the Forest faithful.

This kind of game, against a club that have enjoyed their own fair share of fairytales in recent years, fans may feel should not be a rarity, but a regular event.

No club currently in the Championship can say they’ve battled and fought for a place in the Premier League as much as Nottingham Forest have in recent memory.

Steve Cooper is the 21st permanent manager to take on the task of leading Forest back into the top flight since they dropped out in 1999. The stats tell an accurate story of frustration, failure and a habit of chop and change.

But after knocking out both of the last two FA Cup winners in Arsenal and now Leicester, Forest continue to suggest that this side — one assembled with a blend of homegrown talent, astute additions and loan signings who somehow feel at home — just might be capable of achieving something.

This is indeed a Forest side packed full of youthful enthusiasm, togetherness, determination and, most importantly, no little ability.

It is really hard not to get carried away if you’re a Forest fan, especially seeing the likes of their very own homegrown talents stealing the show under the lights of the City ground, and one player in particular who is allowing the Forest faithful a chance at hope is the ridiculously flawless young Welsh forward Brennan Johnson.

While all the talk in the Sky Bet Championship surrounding young fledgling young talents have been about Fulham’s very own Fabio Carvalho, and rightly so, Forest fans are constantly pushing their own young maestro into the conversation, and you’d be hard-pressed to disagree with them.

In fact, Brennan Johnson may well be topping Fabio Carvalho to becoming the young face of the Championship. The 20-year-old holds more goals and assists to his name than Carvalho, but its also evidently clear that Carvalho isn’t the only one who could well be impressing in the English top-flight any time soon.

Whilst Carvalho garnered much interest from Liverpool during the January window, Brennan Johnson’s abilities and talents was also emphasised by his very own transfer saga last month.

Forest have not tasted Premier League football since 1999, yet still rejected a £18 million bid (with further add-ons) from Brentford for the 20 year old prodigy, in the final week of the window. Forest turned down a huge profit for a player who joined the club’s academy at the age of eight, in the hope of him helping to propel the club back into the top-flight under Steve Cooper.

Once the season draws to its conclusion come May, Brennan Johnson will be plying his trade in the big one way or another, and Forest will be hoping its with them when the new season kicks off in August.

The 20-year-old is indeed a flawless young talent. A player who has on many occasion this season, gotten the Forest faithful up off their seats with his admirable bravery, courage, youthful exuberance and raw attacking qualities. In his first season as a Championship regular, Johnson has now notched up seven goals and six assists, in 29 starts.

Lining up in the front three of Steve Cooper’s well-balanced and fluid 3-4-3 system, Johnson has not only developed tactically on a personal level but has provided Forest with the attacking potency, cutting edge and swiftness they need to be effective under Steve Cooper.

Since his appointment in September, no team in the Championship has garnered more points (39) than Cooper’s men. Under his stewardship, Forest have risen from the relegation places into eighth in the Championship, two points off the play-off places, an impressive feat.

Under Cooper, Forest have played with more confidence, purpose, intention and vigour and much of that has been down to the excellence of Brennan Johnson, along with Philip Zinckernagel, Djed Spence, loan signings Keinan Davis and James Garner from Aston Villa and Manchester United respectively, and Joe Worrall.

Though, Johnson has been the pick of the bunch. The 20-year-old is currently playing like a footballer plying his trade in the Premier League, and his performances against two of the English top-flight’s elite clubs in Leicester City and Arsenal have evidently shown that he is not out of place playing against elite footballers.

Brennan Johnson is well on his way to becoming a future Premier League star. A throwback forward, one who loves to drive down the wing and pick out telling crosses for his teammates, it may seem pretty ordinary, but the Forest academy product does with such panache and graceful wizardry. He’s quick, agile, tactically intelligent, a livewire when he gets going and almost impossible to stop.

His six assists in the Championship so far this season highlights how creative he is for Nottingham Forest. In the Championship, he averages 1.2 key passes, 1.7 shots per game, 1.2 dribbles per game showcasing just how crucial he is to Forest’s attacking play. What Steve Cooper has instilled in his side, is the freedom to express themselves, even personally telling Johnson ‘don’t be boring, be positive’ and the forward has taken on such advice with spirited excellence.

His goal against Leicester City on Sunday once again highlighted the freedom of confidence he is currently performing at, possessing the quickness of though, anticipation and hunger to latch onto a mistake from a Leicester City player before coolly slotting the ball through the legs on his fellow countryman Danny Ward to put Forest 2-0 up.

It is a mindset and the sort of performance levels that has elevated Johnson and seen him become one of the most coveted young players outside the Premier League.

Steve Cooper has a proven track record with young talent, leading England’s under-17s to World Cup glory in 2017, and Johnson’s progress over the last six months is clear to see.

Johnson’s loan spell at Lincoln City last season also reaped good rewards, notching 11 goals and 5 assists in League One.

Last season his technical ability allowed for tactical flexibility as he was deployed on the left, centre and right of an attacking midfield three within Lincoln’s 4-2-3-1 setup. Based on his time at Lincoln it’s visible that he operates well in an attacking three that all posses similar attributes, such as the ability to operate as an inside forward and combine via the use of halfspaces up and down the pitch.

One of Johnson’s many key attributes is the ability to identify off the ball space in which set himself up for goal scoring opportunities.

Johnson has the mercurial ability to produce a chance out of very little when things fall into place for him. Be that with a sharp dynamic movement that wins his side a penalty, dangerous set-piece situations or an effective progressive carry into space which is enabled through his athleticism and gazelle-like strides when hitting top speeds. His gracious movement accompanies his close control ability well which allows for fast turns of pace as well as avoiding oncoming challenges through an acute change of direction.

Johnson is certainly a jack-of-all-trades type winger, not only does he back his own talent in certain attacking scenarios, he also has the salient ability to make split-second decisions which are often the correct idea when faced with tough decisions to make, especially on the counter or through patient attacking build-ups. It’s because of these impressive traits, Johnson will look at right at home with a number of Premier League clubs in future.

One things for sure, it won’t only be Brentford in the picture for his signature this summer, but several of the top clubs in the country.

There is a long list of young fledgling talents who have stepped up from the Championship and made their mark amongst the elite in the Premier League and Brennan Johnson looks certainly on his way to becoming the latest of those who will go on to become an English top-flight star.

Youri Tielemans’ return from injury a timely boost for Leicester City

Youri Tielemans’ return from injury a timely boost for Leicester City

To say Leicester City have endured an inconsistent season so far is very much an understatement. After finishing the 2020/21 campaign with a fifth placed finish in the Premier League, and securing their first FA Cup triumph – marking it a very successful season for the Foxes – many fans had hoped the club would build from that with a fast start in the Premier League, but things haven’t quite gone to plan.

At the time of writing, Brendan Rodgers’ men sit eighth accumulating 22 points from a possible 48 before Christmas with six wins, four draws and 6 defeats. Leicester have conceded the most goals out in current the top 10 and the fourth most goals in the Premier League (27).

Aston Villa’s Emiliano Buendia heads towards goal before team-mate Ezri Konsa (centre) scores their side’s first goal during the Premier League match at Villa Park

Injuries and absentees have played a huge part, key individuals like Wesley Fofana and James Justin are yet to feature this season after long-term injuries, and injuries to other key stars such as Wilfred Ndidi, Jonny Evans, Jannik Vestergaard, Ryan Bertrand and Youri Tielemans have certainly unsettled Rodgers’ side and as a result, their form has suffered including getting knocked out of the UEFA Europa League in a 3-2 defeat against Napoli.

Though, their matchday 16 triumph over Newcastle provided fans with a taste of what they have been crying out for especially in the form of their midfield maestro Youri Tielemans who put in a show-stopping performance alongside in-form James Maddison and Patson Daka.

A lot has been made in recent weeks about how much Leicester City have missed Tielemans. In truth, the results and performances have been poor with and without the Belgian. But, the win over Newcastle capped a perfect display, their first clean sheet since the opening day and a partnership that could really be used as a stepping stone to improve on their fortunes heading into the busy festive period.

What Leicester have been plainly missing in recent weeks – that emerged for the first time this season on Sunday – was the combination of their two most creative players. The James Maddison-Youri Tielemans axis which could destroy just about club in the English top-flight.

Newcastle were of course the latest in a long line of potential victims.

The pair had started eight games together before they took Newcastle apart at the King Power, but they were inconspicuous displays in which one or both of them fell short of the mark during Leicester’s struggles.

Maddison, by his own admission, was way off it at the end of last season and the start of the current campaign. However, fast forward a few weeks and the 25-year-old now has four goals and four assists in his last six games and is again showing the sort of form that had him in the mix with Mason Mount, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish for a coveted England place.

James Maddison was truly outstanding and left the field to a rapturous ovation with a few minutes remaining having had a hand in all four goals against a ragged struggling Newcastle United side, he provided everything Rodgers needed, carrying on his stunning form. Though, it was the little Belgian magician alongside him who grabbed control of proceedings demonstrating why he is one of the most coveted midfielders in the Premier League, and the heartbeat of Leicester City.

Making his first Premier League appearance since early November, after being sidelined with a calf injury, Tielemans delivered a stellar performance. “He really is a complete player”, Brendan Rodgers said post-match.

Indeed he is. It’s remarkable to note that the Belgian now has five goals and two assists so far in the Premier League this season. Combined with James Maddison, they’ve contributed to 14 of Leicester City’s 27 goals, that’s just under half which is quite telling.

Against Newcastle, Tielemans was the orchestrator providing Leicester City with the tempo, incisive passing, defensive assurance and the control in possession that much of their play has missed in recent weeks. He was everywhere: heading balls clear in his own penalty box, shielding the make-shift back four with timely tackles, knitting play together with his sumptuous and clever passing and more importantly scoring twice on his 100th Premier League appearance.

The first was expertly dispatched from the penalty spot after James Maddison was adjudged to have been fouled by Newcastle Jamal Lascelles, and the second swept high into the roof of the net after a neat lay-off from James Maddison.

But Tielemans’ ability to take the ball on his back foot and play passes through the lines that makes him so dangerous, and Leicester such an attractive team to watch, particularly when Maddison is the recipient. The way they both bounce ideas off each other in the final third with such flowing, intricate and measured passing which dissected Newcastle’s defence with consummate ease.

Not only is Tielemans Leicester’s standout performer, but he has also been arguably the finest midfielder in England in 2021-22. Signed initially on loan from AS Monaco in January 2019, Tielemans has come to define the Rodgers era at Leicester City as much as the manager himself. After all, he’s only missed twelve out of 136 matches since the former Liverpool and Celtic boss took charge, shortly after Tielemans had made the move from Monte Carlo.

Aged just 24, it says everything about Tielemans’ character, abilities and understanding of the game that staff and teammates at the club already see him as a future coach when he hangs up his boots. Technically superb, the Belgian possesses the game intelligence, positional awareness, vision and range of passing to become one of the most coveted players in Europe let alone the Premier League.

Against Newcastle, it was the complete showing, making challenges and interceptions, box-to-box runs, telling distribution with the ball, making late runs into the box, along with an eye for goal and the ability to finish off moves that so few midfielders in Europe can boast to possess.

Both Tielemans and Maddison both possess the abilities and nous to become so effective when creating chances and scoring goals.

Both of them hold such wonderful vision and time on the ball due to their often immaculate first touches. They combine the ability to see passes many players don’t and the ability to pull them off in a variety of ways: outside flicks like one particularly outstanding Maddison through ball for the Daka goal; driven balls with the laces to slice through opposition midfields, as Tielemans performs with stunning accuracy and regularity.

Amongst midfielders in Europe’s top-five leagues, Tielemans ranks in above the 90th-percentile for shot-creating actions (3.33), progressive passes (6.27) and expected assists (x.16) highlighting how crucial he is to Leicester City’s build-up play. They are much more efficient, effective and potent with both Tielemans and Maddison in the team as Newcastle found out. Also, the Belgian maestro has averaged 1.86 key passes, 5.76 final third passes and 1.19 passes into the penalty area despite performing much of his game from deep.

However, for Leicester City to become as potent as they have been for the past two years, Rodgers acknowledges the fact that he’ll need both Maddison and Tielemans operating closer to Harvey Barnes and Patson Daka/Jamie Vardy. 14 goal contributions between the two proves just why.

Out of contract in 18 months, it will certainly be intriguing to see what happens with Tielemans’ future at the King Power hanging in the balance. Manchester United and Liverpool have both been linked with his signature in the past, and there’s no reason why they won’t return with fresh approaches. For now though, Rodgers will be very glad to have him back fit and firing.

As the game against Newcastle proved, Tielemans is incredibly vital to Leicester City’s ambitions this season.

Tielemans has come to represent the best things about Rodgers’ Leicester: talent, tenacity, and tactical acumen. He’s a player who has won admiring glances from across the continent and one who faces a big decision in the months to come over his future.

For now, Leicester fans, soak in his incredible gifts while you can.