GLEN JOHNSON EXCLUSIVE: I lost respect for Mourinho after he broke a promise... that's why Rodgers is a better boss
Glen Johnson is explaining why Brendan Rodgers is a better manager than Jose Mourinho.
âIt was difficult for me under Jose at Chelsea because there was a moment when he said I deserved to play on merit,â he recalls. âHe said if I played well in the next game I would play the week after. I got man of the match so he couldnât drop me.
âThen in the next game he said the same thing and I got man of the match again. Then we had another game and after that Barcelona. I remember speaking to my agent and saying, âHe wonât play me in this game because if I play well then he has to play me against Barcelonaâ, and I knew that wasnât going to happen.He didnât play me in that game and from that moment I just lost it and thought, âWell, how am I meant to respect you now? Itâs just finishedâ.
âBrendan wouldnât do that. Heâs shown that if youâre good enough youâre old enough and youâll play in the big games if you deserve to. So in terms of man-management, Brendan is definitely better.â
While Johnsonâs time at Chelsea â or specifically, his time there under Mourinho â is the only period of a 12-year top-flight career about which he harbours regrets, it did afford him the chance to work with Rodgers, whose star quality, Johnson says, was already obvious.
âYou could see he had aims to become a manager,â he says. âHe was travelling all over the place to pick up new techniques from coaches and obviously he was fortunate enough to work for Mourinho. Mourinho is one of the best in the world and I would never say heâs not because of what happened between us. But Brendan is different to Jose, he has his own mentality and is definitely one of the best.â
Liverpool have improved dramatically this campaign. At this stage last season they were 29 points off top spot compared to only four now and Johnson believes Rodgers deserves credit for sticking with his philosophy, even when results werenât going their way.
âSome managers like the thought of playing the way Brendan does but havenât got the confidence or knowhow to pull it off. Others would probably have panicked and changed their philosophy just to try and win. But Brendan was mentally strong enough and knew what he was trying to implement was right and that once we grabbed hold of it we would be a success.â
And so it has proved. Liverpool may be, in Rodgersâ words, the âchihuahuasâ of the title race but Johnson is adamant they deserve to be taken seriously as contenders.
Moreover, he can see similarities between this Liverpool team and the Chelsea team he was part of which won two Premier League titles under Mourinho.
We believe we can win every game and I remember having that feeling at Chelsea,â recalls the 29-year-old right back as he relaxes at Melwood after training. âThe first year we won the title (2005) we could be losing 2-0 and still think we would win, and we usually would. That was confidence at its peak and we are moving towards that at Liverpool.
âYou have to believe you can win the league and until there are not enough points available weâll keep thinking we can. Weâve got 10 cup finals, really, because we canât afford to lose games or drop many points because Manchester City and Chelsea wonât.
âCity are favourites because they could field a second team that would be competitive, and you canât compete with that. So we will need a bit of luck but we are definitely good enough.
âOur goal at the start of the season was to finish in the top four and that is still our minimum aim. Finishing third, second or winning the title is a bonus but we are in a good position.â
So, where has this dramatic improvement come from? Johnson, who will win his 50th England cap against Denmark, insists it is natural evolution rather than behind-the-scenes revolution. âThe character and mentality in this squad are different,â he says. âThere were games last season when we battered teams and didnât get results. Weâve got more of a killer instinct this year.
âIn previous seasons, when Stoke (in January) pegged us back to 2-2, people would have crumbled or not felt relaxed enough to play their own game and we might have drawn or even lost. So to score five and get three points at a ground where we hadnât won in the Premier League was a big statement. We are a different side now.â
Johnson, it seems, has been a different player, too. A runaway success last season, he knows he has been below-par this time but refuses to blame it solely on his struggles with injury, although he admits he played through the pain for three months.
Ultimately the strain of three injuries â the most concerning being a torn ankle ligament â became too great and he was forced to take five weeks off before returning to action last Saturday.
âIt was mentally tough because I want to perform how Iâm used to and know Iâm capable of doing, but my ankle was blocked so much that I couldnât run properly. I couldnât move it more than 90 degrees so when I was running I was basically limping.
âBrendan was aware of the injuries but he was asking me to do a job for the team and every footballer wants to play.
âAt first I could play with the injuries but it got to the point where across all three it was affecting my performance and it was time to stop. Now I feel miles better. Iâve got that flexibility back in my ankle and I can run properly.â
Johnson is not trying to make excuses and he accepts some of the criticism which has come his way is justified. However, he laughs off the suggestions of those who doubt his ability to defend.
âI know I could have had a better season,â he admits. âBut you canât play 12 years in the Premier League and not have a bad couple of weeks. Iâm my biggest critic and I donât need to be told when Iâm playing badly.
âYou donât get 49 England caps, play in World Cups and European Championships, you donât win the Premier League twice, the League Cup twice and the FA Cup if you canât defend. Itâs that simple.
âNo disrespect, but youâd be in the Championship.â
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