FINDING ELIGIBLE PLAYERS born abroad is a more sophisticated process for the FAI nowadays, as they’ve partnered with a company called Analytics FC to ensure that no potential passport holder who might improve one of their international teams is missed.
Mikey Johnston’s recruitment, however, was via a more traditional means. Martin O’Neill rang Johnston’s agent to see if he was interested in switching from Scotland to Ireland, but Johnston said the time wasn’t quite right. Mick McCarthy then rang the same agent to ask the same question, and got the same response.
But third time’s a charm. Stephen Kenny rang Johnston directly and this time Johnston was ready to say yes.
“I was always open to it but it only really properly came about when this manager was really keen to get it done”, says Johnston.
His paperwork was cleared before the March international window and Johnston was included in the squad for the friendly with Latvia and the Euro 2024 qualifier with France. Kenny rarely makes a habit of capping new call-ups straight away but he made an exception with Johnston, bringing him off the bench against Latvia for an electric cameo. He then played the final 15 minutes of the defeat to France, bringing to both a direct dribbling quality that the team has lacked for years.
Johnston played for Scotland at U19 and U21 level, and says he doesn’t know whether he was ever in the mix for a senior call-up from the country in which he was born. He is instead happy to throw his lot in with Ireland.
“I think I got a call-up a couple of years ago or I was going to get one but I had a couple of injuries or whatever and it never came about. Look, I’m Scottish-born but I’ve always been open to play for either.
“International football is big, representing Ireland is massive and trying to get to a big tournament is what every player dreams to do, isn’t it? And the opportunity was here and I was just delighted to take it.”
He has not paid attention to whatever criticism he has shipped for his decision.
“It’s been fine. The only people that really matters are your family and friends. If you’re reading comments on Twitter and stuff you’re going to be in for a disaster but the only people that matters are your family.”
Johnston’s family are from Donegal and Derry, and his uncle lives in Bettystown, which, as Evan Ferguson’s hometown, is becoming a kind of cradle for this Irish team. Born in Glasgow, Johnston was brought into the Celtic academy and marked for precocity. Brendan Rodgers gave him a first-team debut at 18 and the club quickly followed up with a three-year contract. He was also marked for bad luck. Beset by injuries, Johnston has yet to manage more than 12 league appearances in a season for Celtic.
“I’ve only had a couple of times where I’d a run of games without getting injured”, he says. “That was the case in Scotland. A lot of times, we had games Saturday-Wednesday-Saturday and as a young lad, my body wasn’t used to it and it began breaking down.”
He therefore had a limited showreel to impress Ange Postecoglou when he took charge at Celtic, and Johnston’s opportunities were limited by the signings of Jota, Liel Abada and Daizen Maeda. So he took a slightly off-beat loan move to Vitoria Guimaraes in Portugal.
“Getting outside of the UK was what I wanted to do. I definitely didn’t want to stay in Scotland, Portugal was a good offer and it’s probably the fifth biggest team in Portugal so it is a massive club. We get a lot of fans every week so there was still pressure.
“Maybe I felt a little hard done by at times, but my body was in a bad way. At one stage it was really bad, it was going to take time. That’s why getting out of the UK was good, getting out of the media and stuff. I had one season where my body was feeling pretty bad, so that was the aim.”
The approach to training in Portugal suited him, Johnston says, being less physically intense and more tactical. The fixture schedule suited a little better too, with fewer three-game weeks allowing him to steadily build up consistency. He made 25 league appearances across his season in Portugal, and the fact he played in all of Vitoria’s final nine games gives him a match sharpness that is sorely lacking across the Irish squad ahead of Friday’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Greece.
“I feel like I’ve learned so much in the year”, he says, reflecting on the season. “When you play for Celtic, you’ve got the ball all the time and you’re attacking. My club, we had the ball a lot, but not always because there were four bigger teams – three in Champions League as well – so there were probably eight games where you were testing yourself against them when you didn’t have the ball as much and just, tactically, I learned so much. Obviously with Celtic we played sort of the same system a lot whereas we changed a lot in Portugal, depending on other teams so I learned a lot.
“When you’re playing at Celtic, you get a lot of 1v1s, a lot of touches, sometimes in Portugal you’re not in the game as much and you need to be more effective when you get it and be smart, win fouls. It’s a different style of football completely. You see it in how the referees are as well, it’s completely different.”
Johnston is a classic winger, a position currently not valued in Ireland’s set-up, which changes between a 3-5-2, a 3-4-2-1 and a 3-4-3. Handily, Vitoria cycled between the latter two systems as well, with Johnston playing off the left in both, as either a left-sided forward or tucked slightly further in-field as a left-sided number eight.
He doesn’t yet know what next season will hold for him, admitted he would like to give Celtic another go while acknowledging that his ultimate priority is to play every week. Brendan Rodgers’ mooted return to Celtic Park might be better news for Johnston than most.
“He gave me my debut”, says Johnston, “and every player will love the guy who gave them their debut aren’t they? But he’s a great manager and if he came back to Celtic it would be unreal.”
Of more immediate focus is the clash with Greece on Friday, in which Johnston will play a role, even if it’s just off the bench.
“I am probably a player who thinks ‘dribble first’”, he says when asked to describe his style. “I probably shouldn’t at times, but that is what I do.”
Those talents have been missing in the Irish squad for some time, as Johnston’s phone records will attest. That he said yes to Stephen Kenny’s call may be good news for everybody.
