I've watched Johnny a lot since his move to Betis because I am fan of Tactic Manager podcast and he has been saying how good Johnny was in Brazil (Tac is Brazilian-American). I think it is not a good comparison with LDLT. Johnny is a real 6 and he does NOT progress the ball by dribbling. Like almost never. The comparison would be with Adams. Johnny is more cultured than Adams (who I like) and tries not to tackle unless there's no alternative. THEN he tackles very well and is rarely carded. The Spanish Press (AS and MARCA) has been full of praise for the way Johnny plays and the shock that Betis got him for $6M! PS-I am super excited to see Johnny with our first USMNT. He adds to the offense quite a bit more than Adams.
He's a lot more like a Busquets- tackling only as a necessity. From a Spanish perspective, needing to tackle as a DM means your initial read was wrong and you were out of position. Or you're just cleaning up the occasional mess. By and large they put more of a premium on high IQ quick reading DM's. On one hand we're seeing Johnny's skill. On the other, his IQ is incredibly high.
It's not a perfect comparison was mostly trying to point out that he had more skill/positioning than athleticism. He definitely wasn't playing as a 6 in the second half. He got forward quite a bit.
Betis seems to use twin 6's a lot but I didn't watch the 2nd half. BTW, Johnny is super athletic but doesn't try to solve every problem by running like a crazy man.
Preposterous, I read my Gio Reyna threads and I have it on good authority that running around like a crazy man is the only way you can play midfield in a top league these days.
Fotmob gave him an 8.2 score today. Tied w/ Morata as the highest on both teams. Looking at his ratings since joining Betis and he has only scored under a 7 once... in his first game against Barca. Pretty Sic.
Watching Johnny today I couldn't help but think of Gio. While there are some obvious differences, I think there are also some real similarities in the way that they approach the game. Seems like Spain was Gio's first destination choice this last break and personally, after watching Johnny for the last few weeks, I think it is almost certainly the best fit for Gio.
Theyre very different players with different mentalities. Johnny is described as mature and intelligent, Reyna is described as immature and hot-headed. Johnny's mentality is the thing that has facilitated his success in La Liga. Reyna would be wise to get him on the phone and learn from him.
from Wikipedia: Cardoso was born in Denville Township, New Jersey, United States, to Brazilian parents and moved to Brazil when he was three months old.[3] He had stints at Avaí and Criciúma before moving to the youth academy of Internacional.[4]"" 3 months old ... https://www.goal.com/en-us/news/mee...e-brink-of-becoming/vemqn0yp48kt1cu1s2wnuajhm as per Reyna ... "Reyna was born in Sunderland, England, to American parents, Claudio Reyna and Danielle Reyna, when his father was playing for Sunderland. Both of his parents are former soccer players, who played for the United States men's and women's national teams, respectively. His family moved back to the United States, settling in Bedford, New York, in 2007 when Reyna was five years old" Johnny's parents in the porcelain business ... Gio's parents in soccer .... frankly - it might have been easier for Johnny to not have that pressure on him and to see him properly developed (without any expectations) by the training systems in Brazil. contrast that with Gio - who while talented - was always going to have his parents shadow over him and that probably has something to do with how his development and expectations have gone. we are lucky to be able to have Johnny in the USMNT pool frankly. What is Johnny going to say to Gio? Tell him to have his parents not so deeply involved and to try and make his own way? The whole situation is difficult. Gio is going to have to figure it out just like Johnny has done.
You guys go over the top with the Reyna stuff. He has never had any issue at a club...he only had a one off issue with the us setup during the world cup (and it was his parents, coach, and the higher ups...gio just sulked because he wasn't starting). He went to Nottingham Forrest because his agent setup is probably the type to advise to never take a paycut and wants to maximiaze earnings. Nothing more nothing less.
He barely played for Dortmund last season despite having wild productivity numbers, and got in an on-field shouting match with their captain prior to being shipped out on loan this season. It's not a big leap to assume that he has been having attitude problems at Dortmund.
Numbers wise - 11 BL appearances (zero goals) for Gio in 23 - 24 season (he appeared in 22 matches in 22 - 23 season) .... 3 EPL so far for 23 - 24 for him. That is 14 total and with only 11 more games in the EPL season he needs to appear in 8 matches just to match 22 - 23 season .... if this was to be a productive move for him to Forest ... he needs to start playing more. With Forest in 17th position - he had better up his game for Nuno to choose to depend on him to help them avoid relegation. The next 4 matches are pretty important for Nuno to try and keep this squad in contention to stay in the EPL.
Of course, you're correct. Doing the Bobby Convey/Justin Mapp hand wave for the ball while fully rooted to the ground is the right way to go. Throwing a 3 year old temper tantrum when the ball isn't gently deposited on your laces is good, too. And getting into shouting matches with your team captain, and throwing a fit with your national team manager will score you points as well. I mean, how does Cardoso even function as a player, if he can't do all of that?
Regarding the transfer fee point, Internacional did tack on a 20% sell on fee which could stand to bolster the total transfer fee to a solidly double digit figure
"Shouting match." "Shipped out." This is the kind of stuff I think of when @comoesa says people are going over the top about Reyna. That was hardly a shouting match. Reyna was seeking a loan.
great post btw. Could not agree more. As the game evolves and our players improve - high soccer IQ in the run of play is critical. Tom Brady was not a first round pick ... but it was like having a coach behind the center whenever he was on the field. Do our players think that way? Seems like the Spanish press think Johnny could be like that?
Johnny's first step is a little slow but he's fast otherwise; Adams has a good first step. Johnny doesn't dribble; Gio dribbles Mexican internationals for fun. Johnny doesn't run at people - he prefers to use players as screens and jump into interceptions or ambushes; Aaronson is good running at people/pressing. One thing I noticed about Johnny is that he is quite good around zone 14 (area around the half moon at top of opponent's box). Like playmaker said above, Johnny was open at top of the box and his teammates didn't get the ball to him. Johnny's assist on Betis' goal was a square pass across the top of the box to a teammate who fired it upper 90. Johnny is the best YA off the ball, imo.
And I hope Betis finish in the European spots again and put together a stronger run than this year, on the back of some sparkling performances from Johnny.
Right now, it looks like they'll be back in the Conference League next season. I hope that either Real Betis have a strong finish or that a bigger club buys him in the summer.