STEVEN GERRARD today predicted Glen Johnson’s career will take off next season after he provided a spectacular reminder of why Liverpool were so eager to sign him.
The Reds right-back has come in for criticism during his first year at Anfield and his defensive capabilities were called into question towards the end of the campaign.
Johnson, however, showed the best side of his game when scoring a brilliant goal to put the seal on England’s 3-1 win over Mexico at Wembley on Monday night.
He was also comfortably England’s best defender which led to him winning the sponsors’ Man of the Match award and it also earned him a ringing endorsement from Gerrard.
Liverpool’s captain is predicting the 25-year-old will have a key role to play for England at the World Cup but, significantly, he feels this display also augurs well for the Reds.
“I thought Glen had a really good game and took his goal superbly,” said Gerrard. “He has done that a few times for us and he can do real damage with his left foot.
“He is very dangerous when he can run down the wing like he did against Mexico and cut inside. When he is in that mood, he provides Liverpool and England with a real threat.
“He has got great quality. Glen is one of the best attacking full-backs around and I think he has done really well for us but there is definitely better to come.
“Injuries have really disrupted him this season but I’m sure next season he will show his best form on a regular basis, the kind he showed when he first came here.”
Though Johnson hit the ground running after his £17m move from Portsmouth, scoring twice in his first four games, things never went according to plan there after.
A persistent hamstring problem stunted his progress last autumn but his undoubted low came when he damaged knee ligaments in a 1-0 win at Aston Villa on December 29.
That injury forced him to miss 12 games in January and February and his form – with the exception of a stand out performance against Sunderland on March 28 – clearly suffered.
But Gerrard has seen enough over the past 12 months to suggest Johnson can become a big player for Rafa Benitez’s men and is tipping him to flourish for club and country.
“Injuries are the worst part of a game for a footballer and Glen has been unlucky because he has suffered with them this season at different times,” Gerrard pointed out.
“What people don’t tend to realise is that when you have been out for two or three weeks, it can take another two or three weeks to get your match sharpness back.
“When you think he’s been trying to settle in to a new club, too, you can see it hasn’t been easy but if he gets a clear run, he’ll definitely make a difference for us, no doubt. Liverpool will be a much better side with a fully fit, confident Glen Johnson flying down the right hand side and I’m sure he will go from strength to strength.”
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