OPINION
All West Ham fans should have goosebumps over how good Ben Johnson could be after Jack Collison remarked on the player’s senior debut against Manchester City.
The Hammers’ U-18s manager cheekily shared he felt sorry for the 19-year-old when he faced Man City as the starlet was playing out of position against one, if not, the Premier League’s strongest side.
“Poor old Ben Johnson!” Collison proclaimed in an interview with the Evening Standard on the player facing Man City.
“Playing out of position but what an opportunity for him, getting that opportunity and selling that opportunity to these young players now, they’ve actually got something they can look to and strive to achieve.”
Given that several Hammers supporters may have failed to notice that Johnson was playing out of position given his sudden first-debut came out of nowhere, they’ll no doubt be excited following Collison’s remarks.
This is because as while the Hammers coach may have said poor Johnson, the 19-year-old actually impressed in the 1-0 defeat to Manchester City in February.
Johnson didn’t show any fears when in possession despite being up against world-class players and effectively kept Riyad Mahrez in his pocket during the match as the Man City attacker just couldn’t get the best of him.
If the 19-year-old is able to impress against Man City while playing out of position then how good will he be when deployed as a right-back when playing against teams that aren’t competing for the Premier League title.
Collison clearly didn’t know Johnson would flourish as a right-back given his reaction to the player’s senior debut and that also implies that the teenager is still full of surprises that the Hammers’ coaching staff are yet to uncover.
If the former Hammers’ man remarks on Johnson’s debut don’t have fans dreaming about the player’s potential, nothing will.