Impressed Joe Hart is utterly convinced Mikey Johnston can be an Irish international hero after putting his injury nightmare behind them.
The 23-year-old has made the most of his loan exit from Celtic by turning heads with Vitoria Guimares before making an instant impact with Stephen Kenny's national side. And Johnston's upwards trajectory is no surprise to Hart who spent his first season in Glasgow with the winger whose recent form after overcoming his setbacks has caught the eye.
Speaking to the Irish Mirror, he said: "Ireland are getting someone who is potentially very special. He has a lot of ability and the kind of qualities that can lift people off their seats. I noticed that the moment I met him, but he’s been very unlucky with injuries. You have to really understand football to understand what he’s been through because they’re not your average injuries.
“People understand when you pull your hamstring and you're out for eight weeks but you come back and you're fine. Or if you break a leg. But Mikey had these little injuries that kept holding him back and stopped any sort of momentum and flow in his career. But he's very professional and is doing his best to get the best out of himself. A fully fit Mikey Johnston can impact games and he’ll get people out of their seats."
Hart himself knows how quickly things can turn with his career doing a 180 after several tough years after being axed by at Manchester City by Pep Guardiola in 2016. And he sees similar powers of recovery from Johnston and knows confidence is key.
He added: “Mikey is a throwback winger, but he’ll be the first to admit that he must produce consistency - both availability wise and how he plays. If he does that, then I really think he’ll be a great acquisition for anyone. Those are the things he’s working on, but football is not that simple and straightforward.
“You don't just roll out of bed every day and automatically play your best. As long as he keeps his head down and keeps working, he can do that. Mikey is a confidence player, there’s no secret about that. But getting that feeling of positivity from the Irish crowd will do a lot for him.
“Mikey doesn't ‘need’ to feel appreciated, but if he is then you’ll see a lot of positivity out of him. If Mikey is cheeky and excitable, you're going to get a good player but when he's not, you need to get him back to those ways if you want to see the best out of him.”
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