Sam Johnstone is happy at West Brom and he feels at home at the club
Sam Johnstone has been discussing his rollercoaster journey to the Premier League and declared he is happy at West Brom.
The 27-year-old signed for Albion in 2019 in what was his first permanent move away from Old Trafford.
This season he has been able to fulfil his dream of playing in the Premier League and has delivered for his side with 99 saves – the most of any goalkeeper.
In an interview with The Mirror he reflected on his career progression, the moment he joined Albion, and how he is feeling currently.
He said, “It’s a bit mad – I’ve served my time on loan in League One and the Championship, played a lot of games, won promotion a couple of times and come close to promotion a few times as well.
“And when you finally reach the Premier League, you’re gutted because nobody is allowed to see it.
“It felt crazy to sign for West Brom in the sense that I was becoming somebody else’s player, but I’m loving it here.
“I’ve already played more than 100 games for the club and it feels like home.”
Positive sign
West Brom have been sub-par for much of the season but the futures of a few players, including Johnstone and Matheus Pereira, are under doubt.
The keeper has arguably been our best performer this term and if it was not for him we could have been heavily beaten multiple times since our promotion.
As such, there is likely to be interest in him – journalist Joseph Masi hinted at that in a recent podcast.
Johnstone also admitted to The Athletic that he is determined to play Premier League football – it looks unlikely he will get that at The Hawthorns next year.
However, these latest comments show he is enjoying his life with us currently.
He is now settled for the first time in his career, which is brilliant news as it may persuade him to stay and fight to get us back up.
Johnstone has a positive attitude despite things going wrong on the pitch.
We will need that strength of character to push for promotion, so the £32,000 a week keeper will be key – just as he was in 2019/20.
In other West Brom news, Exclusive: West Brom academy product tipped to start v Brighton by ex-Baggie.