Not really the case. He was well liked and highly regarded at the club, by both management and fans alike. He did actually play for us a lot more than people seem to realise, and whenever he did play he certainly never got any stick from the fans. Mancini's intent was to always push him however - not so much by giving him stick, but rather by not praising him more than he perhaps should have done.
Johnson's ideal game is playing out wide, with having the freedom to cut inside, which is what he often tried to do for us. Considering that we play with attacking full backs, it's a system that does suit Johnson, in that the full-backs can push up, thus allowing Johnson to cut inside, creating space down the wings. It was often the case that his decision making wasn't the best, and he can be quite selfish when better options present themselves, but in fairness to him, he was probably so eager to impress, thus trying to cement a more permanent starting place, that ultimately that became his own undoing. I do feel that if he is pretty much guaranteed to start week in week out, he'll thrive under that. At City, whereas like I say he did play more than people seem realise, he certainly wasn't a guaranteed starter, and his attitude and approach to games suffered because of that.
) but when your players don't do what is ever in his game plan, he isn't shy about showing his disgust.
