Eddie Johnson came off the bench and scored a goal in Fulham's 3-0 preseason win over Australian A-League champions Melbourne Victory on Saturday.
With the game already 1-0 in favor of the Cottagers, Johnson entered the game as a substitute and doubled the lead, scoring in the 67th minute.
Johnson and Fulham finish up their Australian pre-season matches by playing Perth Glory on Wednesday.
Do you think Johnson is ready to make an impact for Fulham this season? Should he get loaned out again? Do you feel that he should be on the Gold Cup roster?
Share your thoughts below.
Couldn’t hold Cooper’s, Casey’s, or Zamora’s jock. Different type of player though
the bottom line with eddie johnson is…..bad attitude, lack of maturity, and no workrate on the field.
ej has all the physical tools but his challenges in succeeding at the professional level have come in the three aforementioned areas. i am pulling for ej to get back to being the player he was and can be….but i have my doubts.
i have seen him play since his days in bradenton…..and that includes watching him in practices. skill he has always had. workrate has not always been there. someone mentioned him relying only on speed and i would disagree…..he knows how to play soccer and understands the tactical side of the game but he does not put forth the effort on a consistent basis. he was able to get by on physical ability only at the youth level, but that is no longer an option at the professional level.
if nothing else, an american player going to europe should take one lesson from the paths traveled by ej and dempsey…..in order to succeed in europe you MUST perform on a daily basis, whether it be practice or a game, in order to be successful. as of now, ej has not done that, dempsey has.
lastly, like other players in the national team pool (read: adu) ej should not be called into the USMNT until he produces consistently for his club team.
you can’t teach speed and natural ability. he has that. he literally needed to learn to play “proper” football. the good news is that his manager at cardiff said he worked his but off everyday. that is what he lacked in the past. he also lacked confidence. if he keeps training hard and builds his confidence…. he could certainly find a spot with fulham who doesn’t have any amazing strikers.
I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I am definitely pulling for EJ to succeed.
right now….
EJ is better than Casey
EJ is better than Cooper
The G.A.M. has always had potential, the problem was his lack of hustle and technical ability. He is in exactly the right place to work on those shortcomings. If he keeps his head screwed-on properly this season and builds on this confidence, then he could actually provide much-needed striker depth for the MNT in S.Africa. I like to joke around about Mr. Excitement, but I’m definitely pulling for the guy. We need him!
Thanks Andrew In Tampa and Moonraker. Why do all the “experts” on this blog bury players so quickly. Criticism is one thing, but the vitriol is uncalled for. Guess they’re still bitter over getting cut from their JV Middle School teams.
I think if Johnson wants a shot at the US team again, he has to show he has what it takes to play for Fulham. He just has to make smarter choices and score the goals, and he could be a starter. I do see him coming off the bench hopefully as the 1st choice sub.
Its kinda appropriate that the background of the EJ picture has DB in it… don’t you think? Both drop off the map and both need to move to regain their confidence. If they can move, start and actually do well consistently, then maybe some bench time next year.
EJ has always had lots of potential, plus he is big and fast, two things you can’t coach. Hopefully, these last two years have helped him get his head on straight. It’s a meaningless friendly against weak opposition but hopefully it gives him a lift. It certainly wouldn’t hurt the USMNT if he could get into some kind of form over there in the next few months.
Watching Cooper and Ching tonight neither has shown themselves to be dangerous even against Concacaf opponents. EJ at his best was scoring goals at will. You can’t argue with that. If he returns to form, he can be dangerous again for the US MNT. Depth at forward continues to be a problem for us. Did you feel confident that Ching was going to score against Haiti? Did you think Casey was going to score against Brazil? I don’t think so.
Stay. Away. Forever.
Thanks!
I’d still take EJ over Conor Casey any day
I’d rather have seen EJ force Brazil’s defence to respect his speed, before they realized he had little to no touch, than Casey, who is not dangerous to any defence outside of MLS .
@Brett
“Cardiff never gave him minutes because the guys ahead of him were scoring. Once they got him some token minutes near the end of the year, he finished with a MOTM performance, and then 2 goals in a short period.”
He had two goals in thirty games with Cardiff, THIRTY! Not all were starts, but what you’ve written is completely at odds with reality.
EJ making an impact for Fulham would take an act of God.
Seriously, Larry? I don’t think anybody gives a f*ck about you and your figs.
I don’t give 2 figs about EJ’s performance in a pre-season Fulham game. I do hope that he never sees another USMNT uniform close up.
Brett- Josh wolfe is having a “breakout year” in MLS, should he be back too?
Time for fresh legs my friend. EJ has had his chances
Cardiff never gave him minutes because the guys ahead of him were scoring. Once they got him some token minutes near the end of the year, he finished with a MOTM performance, and then 2 goals in a short period.
His lapses could keep him from ever realizing his potential, but the potential is there. As hyped as Charlie Davies is right now among US supporters, it barely compares to the hype around Eddie when he first broke through to the senior team. He had some probs, but if he flourishes in Europe he has to be back in the fold.
Turtle, don’t you think EJ has been ample opportunity (and THEN some) to prove himself on the MNT? I am all for giving people multiple chances, but he has squandered like 20 opportunities. If Altidores transfer to Greece is real, AND he plays regularly, look for him and Davies being front runners for strikers, with Ching the first sub, and then “the rest”…or so i HOPE
REad carefully (game reprot from Fulham’s website):
“And the freshly introduced (Eddie)Johnson made an immediate impact. Racing on to an Andranik ball through the middle the American striker fired confidently into the back of the net. 2-0.”
Ok…key word in that passage – CONFIDENTLY. We all know Eddie has ability. It’s that part of his game (his confidence) that holds him back. If he maintains confidence he should/will be back in the mix for NT time.
Personally, I’m pulling for him.
fulham want him to score goals in these friendlies so they can attract some interest and sell him