Liverpool fans haven’t exactly come out in droves to mourn the departure of Glen Johnson.
With the signing of Nathaniel Clyne most feel that they have improved in the right back department and, with the additions of James Milner, Christian Benteke, Roberto Firmino, Danny Ings, Joe Gomez and Adam Bogdan, the majority of Reds supporters believe that Brendan Rodgers has improved his squad.
But Johnson doesn’t agree with them.
The 30-year-old, who moved to Stoke this summer, reckons that the 2015/16 squad is no better than the team that Rodgers had at his disposal last year.
He said: “They’ve made some signings, but not ones that are going to walk straight into the team. They’ve lost Raheem [Sterling], who was an important player, so I wouldn’t say it’s a better squad than last year.”
Johnson says he turned down a contract offer from Liverpool and that he doesn’t feel the pressure to prove anything to Reds fans who may have questioned his abilities.
“I had a very good time there and enjoyed the majority of it. But I turned down a new contract at the end of the day, so it ended exactly how I would like.
“I met Mark Hughes and everything he had to say was what I wanted to hear. I’m settling in well and I’ve been made to feel welcome, so it couldn’t be going any better at the moment.
“It’s just typical my first game [for Stoke] is against my old club. That’s football and we’ll do what we’ve got to do. It’s my job and I’ll treat it as any other game.
“I’ve been in the Premier League for 12 years – I’ve got nothing to prove. When I was fit I was in the team, simple as that. There’s no problems at all.”
