 Johnson in Wolves pre-season, 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Roger Johnson[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1983-04-28)28 April 1983 (age 42) | ||
| Place of birth | Ashford, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1998–2000 | Wycombe Wanderers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2000–2006 | Wycombe Wanderers[2] | 157 | (19) |
| 2006–2009 | Cardiff City | 119 | (12) |
| 2009–2011 | Birmingham City | 76 | (2) |
| 2011–2015 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 69 | (2) |
| 2013–2014 | →Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 2014 | →West Ham United (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2015 | Charlton Athletic | 14 | (0) |
| 2015 | Pune City | 11 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | Charlton Athletic | 6 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Bromley[a] | 52 | (2) |
| Total | 525 | (37) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2022–2023 | Brackley Town | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Roger Johnson (born 28 April 1983) is an Englishfootball manager and retiredfootballer who was most recently manager atBrackley Town.
Johnson began his career withWycombe Wanderers, where he spent six years as a professional. He then joined Welsh sideCardiff City in 2006 for £275,000. He was part of the team that reached the2008 FA Cup final and was twice chosen as the club's Player of the Year in his three-year stint with the club.
He moved into thePremier League by signing forBirmingham City in 2009 for £5 million, with whom he won the2011 League Cup. He departed Birmingham in 2011 after their relegation to join Midlands neighboursWolverhampton Wanderers, with whom he suffered two further consecutive relegations, leading to his exclusion from first team involvement. After loan spells withSheffield Wednesday andWest Ham United, Johnson left Wolves by mutual consent, and spent the latter part of the 2014–15 season withCharlton Athletic. He played forIndian Super League clubPune City in 2015 before returning to Charlton in January 2016. Released at the end of the season, Johnson signed a short-term contract withBromley in October 2017.
Johnson spent time atPortsmouth andAFC Bournemouth before joiningWycombe Wanderers as a 15-year-old, where he developed through the club's youth system.[4] He made his first-team debut for Wycombe in the final game of the 1999–2000 season againstCambridge United,[2] becoming the youngest ever player to make a Football League appearance for the club at the time, at the age of 17 years and 8 days.[4] The following season, Johnson also made one substitute appearance, and was on the bench as Wycombe beatPremier League clubLeicester City in theFA Cup quarter-finals.[5] The 2003–04 season saw Johnson in and out of the side under managerTony Adams but he was still awarded the Fans' Player of the Year Award.[4]
After the departure of Adams after one season (6 months), Johnson became a regular in the side and was handed the captaincy by new managerJohn Gorman when he took over in November 2004, as well as finishing second in the player of the year award to forwardNathan Tyson.
After 183 appearances and 22 goals for Wycombe,[4] Johnson joinedCardiff City on 4 July 2006 for a fee of £275,000; Cardiff's local rivalsSwansea City £100,000 bid was rejected.[6]
Johnson had a strong first year at Cardiff, and after spending the first six months as a regular substitute, began to form a dominant pairing with DutchmanGlenn Loovens which saw them keep club captainDarren Purse out of the side.[citation needed] In the 2007–08 season he began to score goals, with late winners againstNorwich City in the League[7] andBrighton & Hove Albion in theLeague Cup,[8] as well as vital equalisers againstHull City[9] andPreston North End.[10] Johnson scored the second goal of Cardiff's memorable 2–0 away victory overPremier LeagueMiddlesbrough in the2007–08 FA Cup quarter-final,[11] and his header in theSevernside Derby match againstBristol City in March 2008 was his seventh goal of the season.[12] He played in all six of Cardiff's matches on their way to theFA Cup final, in which they lost 1–0 toPortsmouth,[13] and at the end of the season he was awarded the club's Player of the Year award.[14]
The summer transfer window saw prolonged interest in Johnson; bothIpswich Town andWest Bromwich Albion had bids rejected.[14][15] Despite the interest Johnson remained with the side into the new season although he did see his centre-back partner Glenn Loovens leave to joinCeltic. On the opening day of the season, Johnson scored a late winning goal againstSouthampton as Cardiff came away with a 2–1 win. Despite continued changes in his defensive partner, having played alongside Loovens, Purse and new signingGábor Gyepes, who forced his way into the side past Purse in November,[16] Johnson passed 100 appearances for the club, and had played every minute of the season[17] until he had to leave the field during a 2–0 victory overCrystal Palace on 11 April 2009, after being hit in the throat by an elbow from Palace defenderClaude Davis. After the incident Johnson suffered breathing difficulties and was forced to spend two nights in hospital as well as having daily checks throughout the following week.[14][18][19] Davies was found guilty of violent conduct bythe Football Association and banned for three matches.[20] Johnson was forced to miss the next match, a 3–1 win overBurnley, but returned for the 6–0 defeat to Preston North End the following week.[21] He was chosen as the club's player of the year for the second year running,[14] and was named in the Championship Team of the Year.[22]
In June 2009, after two previous bids had been rejected, Cardiff accepted an offer of £5m fromBirmingham City.[17] Johnson, described by former teammateTony Capaldi as "definitely captain material",[23] signed a three-year deal with the club on 25 June 2009, stating "Premier League football is the dream at the start of any footballer's career so I am pleased I have been given that chance with Birmingham and I can't wait to get started."[17] He made "an impressive debut" in Birmingham's first match of the season, a 1–0 defeat atManchester United.[24] He was part of the Birmingham team which went 12 games unbeaten, a club record for the top flight;[25] at Christmas,The Times' correspondentPatrick Barclay described Johnson and defensive partnerScott Dann as "the players of 2009–10 thus far";[26] and Johnson was suggested as a possible England player.[25] Johnson scored his first goal for the club away againstBolton Wanderers on 29 August 2010,[27] and his second opened the scoring in theSecond City derby againstAston Villa in January 2011.[28]
Johnson's header set up the opening goal forNikola Žigić as Birmingham City defeated favouritesArsenal 2–1 to win the2011 Football League Cup final. TheDaily Telegraph described him as "an inspiring defensive presence throughout".[29]
On 11 July 2011, Birmingham accepted a bid from Premier League clubWolverhampton Wanderers for Johnson.[30] Two days later, Johnson signed a four-year contract with Wolves.[31] The fee was officially undisclosed, and the club claimed that reports of a £7m fee were inaccurate; the Wolverhampton-basedExpress & Star newspaper reported that the club had paid "a flat fee with no add-ons" of "just over £4m".[32]
Johnson was almost immediately handed the captaincy of Wolves byMick McCarthy shortly before the start of the new season, relieving former captainKarl Henry of his duties.[33] The season proved problematic for Johnson and his new team though and McCarthy was sacked in February 2012, following which Johnson said the players had let the manager down.[34] After assistant managerTerry Connor was promoted to fill the vacancy, Johnson featured in only two further matches that season. During March 2012 he was disciplined by the club after turning up for training "unfit to train properly",[35] widely reported as being due to alcohol;[36] the player apologised for his conduct,[37] and retained the captaincy.[35] Later that same month, he had an on-field dispute with teammateWayne Hennessey.[38]
With the club relegated back to the Championship, new managerStåle Solbakken brought Johnson back into the team.[39] Solbakken was however dismissed in January 2013, and although Johnson retained his place in the team, once again the club were relegated, meaning Johnson had now been relegated in each of the last three seasons.[40]
With the arrival ofKenny Jackett as Wolves manager, it was announced in June 2013 that Johnson was available for transfer and he was not issued with a squad number.[41][42] No sale took place during the summer transfer window, and on 16 September, Johnson joined Championship clubSheffield Wednesday on loan for three months.[43] He made 17 loan appearances before the deal expired, but Sheffield Wednesday caretaker managerStuart Gray confirmed that he was attempting to extend the loan agreement.[44]
On 6 January 2014, he joinedPremier League clubWest Ham United on loan for the remainder of the 2013–14 season.[45] Johnson played six games in all competitions for West Ham, his first coming on 8 January 2014 in a 6–0 away defeat toManchester City in a semi-final of theLeague Cup.[46]
Johnson remained at Wolves, now back in the Championship, at the start of the 2014–15 season after the club received no offers during the close season for the player.[47] He was again not issued with a squad number and did not play any first team football during the first half of the campaign. In an interview on Soccer AM, Johnson revealed he trained during afternoons, away from the first team group, but "would probably give up a fair amount of money if I just walked out".[48] On 2 February 2015, the final day of the January transfer window, it was announced that his contract with Wolves had been terminated by mutual consent.[49]
On 3 February 2015, following the termination of his contract with Wolves, Johnson signed a deal with Championship sideCharlton Athletic to last until the end of the season.[50] He started 14 of Charlton's remaining 16 matches.[51]
On 12 May 2015, Johnson was released at the end of his contract.[52]
On 18 August 2015, Johnson joinedIndian Super League sideFC Pune City for the 2015 tournament.[53]
On 4 January 2016, Johnson re-signed for Charlton Athletic on an 18-month contract.[54] He was released in May 2017.[55]
Johnson signed forNational League clubBromley on a short-term deal in October 2017. He made his debut on 14 October in an FA Cup fourth qualifying round match away toDover Athletic,[56] playing until the 90th minute and helping his team achieve a goalless draw.[57] Johnson helped Bromley reach theFA Trophy final atWembley Stadium againstBrackley Town, however he conceded an own goal in the 95th minute. Bromley went on to lose on a penalty shoot-out.[58] While at Bromley he used his Cardiff City connections to get on the Football Association of Wales' coaching course to attain a UEFA A licence.[59] On 16 May 2019, Bromley announced that Johnson had left the club.[60] The following year he returned to the club as manager of the under-23s team. In April 2021, Johnson moved to work alongsideAndy Woodman in the first team as a coach.
On 29 September 2022, Johnson was appointed manager ofNational League North club Brackley Town.[61] In April 2023, he departed the club by mutual consent with them sitting in fourth position.[62]
Johnson was born inAshford, Surrey.[1] He attended St Michael's Middle School inColehill, Dorset,[63] and thenQueen Elizabeth's School, Wimborne Minster. Together with his brothers, Johnson supportedChelsea; he held a season ticket for ten years.[64]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Wycombe Wanderers | 1999–2000[2] | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000–01[5] | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2001–02[65] | Second Division | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2002–03[66] | Second Division | 33 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 35 | 3 | |
| 2003–04[67] | Second Division | 28 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[b] | 1 | 36 | 3 | |
| 2004–05[68] | League Two | 42 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | 48 | 7 | |
| 2005–06[69] | League Two | 45 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5[c] | 0 | 53 | 8 | |
| Total | 157 | 19 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 183 | 22 | ||
| Cardiff City | 2006–07[70] | Championship | 32 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 33 | 2 | |
| 2007–08[13] | Championship | 42 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 52 | 7 | ||
| 2008–09[21] | Championship | 45 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 51 | 5 | ||
| Total | 119 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 1 | — | 136 | 14 | |||
| Birmingham City | 2009–10[71] | Premier League | 38 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 43 | 0 | |
| 2010–11[28] | Premier League | 38 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 45 | 3 | ||
| Total | 76 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 88 | 3 | |||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2011–12[72] | Premier League | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | |
| 2012–13[73] | Championship | 42 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 44 | 2 | ||
| 2013–14[46] | League One | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014–15[51] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 69 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 2 | ||
| Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 2013–14[46] | Championship | 17 | 0 | — | — | — | 17 | 0 | |||
| West Ham United (loan) | 2013–14[46] | Premier League | 4 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| Charlton Athletic | 2014–15[51] | Championship | 14 | 0 | — | — | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| FC Pune City | 2015[74] | Indian Super League | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| Charlton Athletic | 2015–16[75] | Championship | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17[76] | League One | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Bromley | 2017–18[74] | National League | 19[a] | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 7[e] | 0 | 29 | 1 | |
| 2018–19[74] | National League | 33 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 1[f] | 0 | 35 | 2 | ||
| Total | 52 | 2 | 4 | 1 | — | 8 | 0 | 64 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 525 | 37 | 29 | 3 | 24 | 3 | 25 | 1 | 603 | 44 | ||
Cardiff City
Birmingham City
Bromley
Individual
