Alistair Johnston

[Obinna]

48 minutes ago, sandman said:

He is on the radar currently for a couple of championship clubs. Fulham apparently has interest in a couple of CMNT regulars. Would fit in well at a club like that id imagine. 

Any links on the Fulham interest?

[Kadenge]

53 minutes ago, sandman said:

He is on the radar currently for a couple of championship clubs. Fulham apparently has interest in a couple of CMNT regulars. Would fit in well at a club like that id imagine. 

Fulham are leading the Championship, so are very likely to promote to the EPL next season. That would probably be a bit too high a level for his next move 

[jonovision]

1 hour ago, BearcatSA said:

Throughout the Ocho, he has been such a steady performer for us.  He is a very smart player who know what he needs to do to get the job done:  no flashy, "hero" challenges, just smart reading of the threat developing snd snuffing it out before it became a more serious issue.  As well, he provided the offensive spark that we really needed in Edmonton when he attacked the space the Mexicans afforded him after he won the ball (in typical, smart fashion) and took that well executed distance shot which Achoa ended up spilling (and probably other keepers would have had the same result in those conditions) leading to Larin's opener.  That was a crucial juncture in the match, just before the half. 

Great work, Alistair!  You can count me as a member of "Ally's Army!"

If you rewind far enough back he also starts the play for Osorio's goal at the Azteca.

[Obinna]

18 minutes ago, Kadenge said:

Fulham are leading the Championship, so are very likely to promote to the EPL next season. That would probably be a bit too high a level for his next move 

My head says you're probably right, but my heart says this kid is special and would find his minutes for Fulham in the EPL. 

I get pumping the breaks given Laryea's situation, but Johnston's versatility could help him. He has demonstrated the ability to play right back and right center back, while Laryea can play both fullback positions, but is somewhat unconventional (although effective) in doing so, which may be part of the reason he's not playing at the moment. True that Laryea can play as a winger, but I am not sure he's a winger at the EPL level, because like Davies he is best making runs from deep. More importantly than any other that, no two situations are the same, so Laryea's struggles may not suggest Johnston would struggle, but I do get the hesitation about him moving to Fulham. It's not often young players from MLS make such a leap.

Johnston I feel can adapt to that level, given his play with the national team in CONCACAF, as he's been fitting in nicely while playing alongside several players at a higher level than Fulham (Davies, David, and arguably Eustaquio, Buchanan, Larin and Hutchinson). 

Edited March 30, 2022 by Obinna

[BearcatSA]

1 hour ago, Obinna said:

I get pumping the breaks given Laryea's situation, but Johnston's versatility could help him.

I would pump the brakes in that he has really performed quite well/exceptionally in what Herdman and the coaching staff have asked of him in an NT shirt.  I think a new club might be vetting his overall club form even more so.  I have seen guys who look terrific wearing their NT colours disappoint a fair bit when they make a higher profile move.  How he does in Montreal up to the summer window will have a huge bearing on such a move, regardless of what he did in Nashville.

[Obinna]

5 minutes ago, BearcatSA said:

I would pump the brakes in that he has really performed quite well/exceptionally in what Herdman and the coaching staff have asked of him in an NT shirt.  I think a new club might be vetting his overall club form even more so.  I have seen guys who look terrific wearing their NT colours disappoint a fair bit when they make a higher profile move.  How he does in Montreal up to the summer window will have a huge bearing on such a move, regardless of what he did in Nashville.

Yeah fair enough and to your point I don't think he's been outstanding at Montreal. He's been fine, but not outstanding and from his club form alone you wouldn't expect a club like Fulham to come calling. It really is his national team performances that have put them on notice, if they are indeed on notice - still waiting on that link @sandman 

[VinceA]

9 minutes ago, BearcatSA said:

I would pump the brakes in that he has really performed quite well/exceptionally in what Herdman and the coaching staff have asked of him in an NT shirt.  I think a new club might be vetting his overall club form even more so.  I have seen guys who look terrific wearing their NT colours disappoint a fair bit when they make a higher profile move.  How he does in Montreal up to the summer window will have a huge bearing on such a move, regardless of what he did in Nashville.

Yes, club form is important and Montreal have been horrendous defensively in MLS so far.

[MCa]

1 hour ago, VinceA said:

Yes, club form is important and Montreal have been horrendous defensively in MLS so far.

I thought his influence on the backline would add significant quality and pace to the team. Honestly, I'm sort of disappointed. I know it takes time to adapt and I know that Ali has the pedigree to shine above most of our roster, but so far it hasn't been an upgrade from ZBG.  

Edited March 30, 2022 by MCa

[VinceA]

4 minutes ago, MCa said:

I thought his influence on backline would add significant quality and pace to the team. Honestly, I'm sort of disappointed. I know it takes time to adapt and I know that Ali has the pedigree to shine above most of our roster, but so far it hasn't been an upgrade from ZBG.  

My thing is Nancy seems to be ignoring what Herdman is doing for whatever reason. In a back 3 Johnston has shown his quality in a RCB role, not in a RWB role. AJ is not an attacking RWB kind of player. ZBG is tailor-made for a RWB role and has shown that in a back 3.

Nancy either thinks he knows better than what has been proven to work, or is convinced that Johnston should be out wide and not one of the CBs.

[PiedPilko]

2 minutes ago, VinceA said:

My thing is Nancy seems to be ignoring what Herdman is doing for whatever reason. In a back 3 Johnston has shown his quality in a RCB role, not in a RWB role. AJ is not an attacking RWB kind of player. ZBG is tailor-made for a RWB role and has shown that in a back 3.

Nancy either thinks he knows better than what has been proven to work, or is convinced that Johnston should be out wide and not one of the CBs.

Kinda disagree that it's this clear cut - Ali has gotten a chance in a back 3, but he's made some shocking errors, especially for his standards. 

Edited March 30, 2022 by PiedPilko

[costarg]

He's been played both at RCB and RWB, not always an easy transition from match to match.  It's a completely different role and system.  On top of that, he neighbor at RCB is Rudy f'in Camacho who's been a train wreck this season.  Not easy playing beside an unstable moron who never reacts the same to situations.

CFM's defensive issues have almost nothing to do with Miller or Johnston. 

[Kadenge]

2 minutes ago, VinceA said:

My thing is Nancy seems to be ignoring what Herdman is doing for whatever reason. In a back 3 Johnston has shown his quality in a RCB role, not in a RWB role. AJ is not an attacking RWB kind of player. ZBG is tailor-made for a RWB role and has shown that in a back 3.

Nancy either thinks he knows better than what has been proven to work, or is convinced that Johnston should be out wide and not one of the CBs.

This especially since Montreal have 2 of Canada's starting back 3 who have the best goals against in Concacaf WCQ. Most of us thought that AJ would be at RCB and ZBG at RWB in a 3 at the back system

[Obinna]

20 minutes ago, VinceA said:

My thing is Nancy seems to be ignoring what Herdman is doing for whatever reason. In a back 3 Johnston has shown his quality in a RCB role, not in a RWB role. AJ is not an attacking RWB kind of player. ZBG is tailor-made for a RWB role and has shown that in a back 3.

Nancy either thinks he knows better than what has been proven to work, or is convinced that Johnston should be out wide and not one of the CBs.

Similar to what @PiedPilko said. There is nuance here that's being glossed over. 

Not saying Nancy has completely figured it out, or that he doesn't have anything to learn from Herdman, but here's a couple of things that came to my mind when I read your post:

• Johnston has played RWB at times for Canada in a back 3
• He's also played RWB in a back 3 for Nashville
• He's not as effective as ZBG going forward, but he's no slouch. He's a two-way player.
• Johnston has played RCB at times for MTL (though I would like to see more of it).

I believe we are still in the first quarter of the MLS season, so I think it's natural that Nancy is still tinkering how to best use Johnston. I will reserve judgement until more of the season unfolds, though I do agree that Johnston will ultimately be more useful at RCB, or at least that's what I am hoping for.

[Corazon]

27 minutes ago, costarg said:

He's been played both at RCB and RWB, not always an easy transition from match to match.  It's a completely different role and system.  On top of that, he neighbor at RCB is Rudy f'in Camacho who's been a train wreck this season.  Not easy playing beside an unstable moron who never reacts the same to situations.

CFM's defensive issues have almost nothing to do with Miller or Johnston. 

Not that I disagree that Camacho has been poor for Montreal in the games he's played.  However Montreal has given up 6 goals in the two games Camacho has been on the bench and 5 goals in the two games he's started.  I blame Camacho for a lot of Montreal's problems over the years.  Don't think he can be blamed for most of Johnston/CF Montreal's defensive problems so far this season.

Edited March 30, 2022 by Corazon

[BearcatSA]

19 minutes ago, Corazon said:

Not that I disagree that Camacho has been poor for Montreal in the games he's played.  However Montreal has given up 6 goals in the two games Camacho has been on the bench and 5 goals in the two games he's started.  I blame Camacho for a lot of Montreal's problems over the years.  Don't think he can be blamed for most of Johnston/CF Montreal's defensive problems so far this season.

When I have watched the hightlights, they have shot themselves in the feet with giveaways in trying to work the ball out while under forward pressure.  

[jonovision]

My impression of Johnston is that he is a very consistent player that, at least with the MNT, makes the most of his talents. He defends well individually and as part of a fairly well organized system. On the ball he's not afraid to progress the ball forward and make occasional run, though rarely does he take on a whole lot of risk. For that reason he's not involved in creating a whole lot of offense, which makes sense given his position (though he is involved in the buildup for 2 of our biggest goals of the Ocho, both against Mexico). Technically and athletically his abilities don't jump off the screen. 

In short, his biggest attributes are his competence and his consistency, and if those aren't part of the package currently at club level, he may not be getting his big move quite yet.

I agree with the above that Montreal's insistence in playing it out of the back with a back 3 that often includes Waterman, who is clearly not comfortable on the ball, and Breza, whose distribution is iffy, has not helped matters.

[VinceA]

8 minutes ago, jonovision said:

My impression of Johnston is that he is a very consistent player that, at least with the MNT, makes the most of his talents. He defends well individually and as part of a fairly well organized system. On the ball he's not afraid to progress the ball forward and make occasional run, though rarely does he take on a whole lot of risk. For that reason he's not involved in creating a whole lot of offense, which makes sense given his position (though he is involved in the buildup for 2 of our biggest goals of the Ocho, both against Mexico). Technically and athletically his abilities don't jump off the screen. 

In short, his biggest attributes are his competence and his consistency, and if those aren't part of the package currently at club level, he may not be getting his big move quite yet.

I agree with the above that Montreal's insistence in playing it out of the back with a back 3 that often includes Waterman, who is clearly not comfortable on the ball, and Breza, whose distribution is iffy, has not helped matters.

From what I've seen Waterman's issue isn't on the ball, he's a midfielder by trade, it is his defending in transition and some of his defensive awareness.

[BearcatSA]

13 minutes ago, jonovision said:

I agree with the above that Montreal's insistence in playing it out of the back with a back 3 that often includes Waterman, who is clearly not comfortable on the ball, and Breza, whose distribution is iffy, has not helped matters.

Opponents have clearly exploited this and when the ball gets moved (too) slowly to a midfielder under 1 v 1 pressure, bad things start to happen.  Mihailovic, Wanyama, and Kone have all been part of goal conceding giveaways.

(Too bad Bernier can't lace 'em up anymore because with the Impact he was terrific in maintaining possession while receiving the ball under pressure in the holding role.)

They need to be a little more direct with longer passing down the wings to Quioto or another striker running diagonals into flank channels.

[VinceA]

2 minutes ago, BearcatSA said:

Opponents have clearly exploited this and when the ball gets moved (too) slowly to a midfielder under 1 v 1 pressure, bad things start to happen.  Mihailovic, Wanyama, and Kone have all been part of goal conceding giveaways.

(Too bad Bernier can't lace 'em up anymore because with the Impact he was terrific in maintaining possession while receiving the ball under pressure in the holding role.)

They need to be a little more direct with longer passing down the wings to Quioto or another striker running diagonals into flank channels.

Part of Montreal's issue is their attackers do not inspire any fear in the opposition so teams are much more happy to press them. It's almost like teams don't feel like they need to show them any respect because they don't really rate Montreal' offense, which has sort of been proven to be right. Bjorn Johnsen and a post-30 yr old Quioto ain't really scaring anyone good.

They need Mason Toye badly, and even then there's no guarantee he can inspire that respect and fear.

Edited March 30, 2022 by VinceA

[BearcatSA]

5 minutes ago, VinceA said:

From what I've seen Waterman's issue isn't on the ball, he's a midfielder by trade, it is his defending in transition and some of his defensive awareness.

I don't disagree from what I have seen prior to this season, but the passing under pressure has become an issue to start off this year.

[jonovision]

4 minutes ago, VinceA said:

They need Mason Toye badly

What an indictment of the squad (but I think you're right).

[Obinna]

1 hour ago, jonovision said:

My impression of Johnston is that he is a very consistent player that, at least with the MNT, makes the most of his talents. He defends well individually and as part of a fairly well organized system. On the ball he's not afraid to progress the ball forward and make occasional run, though rarely does he take on a whole lot of risk. For that reason he's not involved in creating a whole lot of offense, which makes sense given his position (though he is involved in the buildup for 2 of our biggest goals of the Ocho, both against Mexico). Technically and athletically his abilities don't jump off the screen. 

In short, his biggest attributes are his competence and his consistency, and if those aren't part of the package currently at club level, he may not be getting his big move quite yet.

I agree with the above that Montreal's insistence in playing it out of the back with a back 3 that often includes Waterman, who is clearly not comfortable on the ball, and Breza, whose distribution is iffy, has not helped matters.

I don't think Waterman's problem is that he's not comfortable on the ball. The problem is that he's often too comfortable

[El Diego]

1 hour ago, Obinna said:

I don't think Waterman's problem is that he's not comfortable on the ball. The problem is that he's often too comfortable

Indeed. There is a categorical difference between being a 'good passer' and 'a good problem solver under pressure'.

[Obinna]

10 minutes ago, El Diego said:

Indeed. There is a categorical difference between being a 'good passer' and 'a good problem solver under pressure'.

For sure. The latter is where Waterman has to significantly improve to get into the Canada team. If he can figure this out, I have complete faith that he'll be the heir to Vitoria, or at least he'll challenge Henry for that spot when Vitoria is done. 

The other player I can see in this spot is Cornelius, but we haven't seen it yet under Herdman. Maybe we see it tonight though, with Vitoria and Henry (I presume) in doubt due to fitness. 

[archer21]

2 hours ago, VinceA said:

Part of Montreal's issue is their attackers do not inspire any fear in the opposition so teams are much more happy to press them. It's almost like teams don't feel like they need to show them any respect because they don't really rate Montreal' offense, which has sort of been proven to be right. Bjorn Johnsen and a post-30 yr old Quioto ain't really scaring anyone good.

They need Mason Toye badly, and even then there's no guarantee he can inspire that respect and fear.

I think this is probably a big part of it. It’s hard to know for sure because you often can’t see the whole field, but it seems like Johnston never has any good options when playing out of the back. That leads him to gestate and end up being closed down. Either the midfielders aren’t working hard enough to get open, or teams are allowed to press too much. 

In contrast, he seems very decisive and picks out good passes for Canada.