It was hard not to feel incredibly sorry for Mikey Johnston after the Celtic winger was forced off by injury as Celtic defeated Raith Rovers 4-0 at Celtic Park yesterday afternoon.
Mikey hasn’t had his injury concerns to seek, and when you consider the player has only started 31 games since his debut under Brendan Rodgers in 2017, you can see why the player was visibly upset as he left the field yesterday.
On his day Johnston is as talented as footballers come and as reported by Football Scotland today, Joe Hart recognises the talent the Celtic winger has and points to the tough time Johnston has had with injury, as well pointing out that unless you see what the player goes through with such horrendous luck with injuries it can be difficult to fully understand.
“Mikey Johnston is a cheeky boy, but someone I really like and I really want to do well. He’s an incredibly talented player.
“He’s been through a lot of difficult injuries that maybe people on the outside don’t necessarily understand. t’s not their job to understand, but he’s getting his head down, he’s got a good personality and he’s a top player.”
Ange Postecoglou was asked for comment post-match on Johnston’s latest injury but it appears it’s too early to tell when it comes to the seriousness of the injury, particularly after the manager’s prognosis last time out was somewhat optimistic.
“Mikey Johnston took a knock on his ankle. I’m not really sure how he is at the moment. The last time I said it wasn’t serious it turned out that it was.”
Mikey Johnston started the game brightly yesterday but struggled to make a telling impact on the game as it progressed. He’s a player who has frustrated some within the Celtic support but in truth there is little Mikey Johnston can do when it comes to injuries, and the stop start nature of his Celtic career over the last four years cannot help the player when it comes to exhibiting the confidence his style of play relies on when he returns to the team.
And it looks like patience will have to be shown by Johnston again, but hopefully this injury is minor and he can get back to playing again soon because there is a talented player in Mikey Johnston and he just needs a rub of the green when it comes to injuries to realise the potential he has in abundance.
Niall J
Maybe if we wait till he’s about 50. Big Joe forgets we have eyes too.
Maybe if he would start to play for the team instead of for himself, it would be a help.
He plays like he has never been coached in his life.