Former West Ham and Scotland midfielder Robert Snodgrass has said that Mikey Johnston has made the right move in leaving Celtic. The 24-year-old has two goals in his last three games for the Baggies and Snodgrass believes the move was necessary.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Snodgrass said that the competition at Celtic made it difficult for the Ireland Internationalist to express himself.
“I’ll be honest with you, I think him just stepping away from Celtic was the best thing for Mikey Johnston.
“He wasn’t getting a lot of game time, he wasn’t getting the chance to express his talent. He’s played five games and he’s got two goals in his last three. No matter what he did at Celtic, I always felt as though he was going to be replaced.
“They had some great wingers there as you saw last season and they signed the boy Kuhn and I think that was his time really to try and move and I think he knew that.
“Going to West Brom with a manager that wants him to express himself, I think you saw with his goal midweek, the way he cuts inside and bends it into the far corner. That’s Mikey Johnston, I wasn’t getting to see that at Celtic so he’s definitely done the right thing.”
The 24-year-old moved to the EFL Championship side on a loan deal until the end of the season to get his game time up and it is clear that he is having the desired impact. West Brom fans are full of praise for Johnston and will likely want to make the deal permanent in the summer.
In 92 appearances for Celtic, Johnston had scored 13 goals and assisted on 12 occasions. Frustrating is probably a word that will resonate with Celtic fans when discussing Johnston. Perhaps unfairly, the Irishman receives stick because he’s not really kicked on and he is a homegrown talent.
