MAX TAKES HIS CUE FROM CAMPBELL
Young Player of the Year Johnston aiming to emulate Luton star
FOR Motherwell players and former team-mates, watching the continued success of the relentless Allan Campbell is a joy. The former Fir Park favourite was at the centre of wild celebrations last week as Luton reached next Saturday’s lucrative Championship play-off final against Coventry at Wembley.
Campbell is on the cusp of becoming a Premier League player, two years after leaving Lanarkshire for what was then a middle-rank second-tier club.
The midfielder appears to have found his perfect fit at Kenilworth Road but his impact in England is no great surprise to Max Johnston, who counts Campbell as one of the major influences on his emergence.
Johnston has won the Scottish Football Writers’ Association Young Player of the Year award and is currently at the centre of a transfer scramble set to play out in the summer.
There is continent-wide interest, including from Sporting Lisbon, as well as a flock of English clubs keen to prey on his out-ofcontract status. All this after plying his trade on loan near the foot of the Championship only five months ago.
Before turning 19 on Boxing Day, Johnston had just helped Cove Rangers beat Hamilton Accies. But great things are possible through hard work and dedication. That was a point hammered home when Johnston thought he would be clever and stand out from the crowd three years ago.
The young teen hopeful was determined to show off his dedication by making an exceptionally early entrance at Fir Park ahead of training. He explained: ‘When I was 16, I would come in really early because I wanted to make a good impression.
‘Wee Al (Campbell) would always be at the gym.
I’d be thinking: “What time does he come in? And when is he actually waking up!?”. I’d get in about 8.30am for a 10am start and he’d STILL be in before me. I remember that because it made me think: “This is the day I’m going to be first in”. But it just never happened. I reckon he just slept in here. ‘Wee Al was always the hardest worker in training. He was really good with me, dedicated. He was a great example to me at that age. Now look at how far he’s come on.
‘It was amazing for him the other night. I’m delighted for him; everyone at the club is. We all talk about how well he’s getting on.
‘There are never any shortcuts. You just need to dedicate your life to it and work extremely hard. That’s what wee Al has done. Obviously, that pushes all the young boys who can think: “He’s done it, so why can’t I?”.’ Johnston admits he felt he could do what he wanted — namely, gatecrash the Motherwell first team — before he was truly ready.
Graham Alexander handed him a debut at 17 in a February 2021 derby against Hamilton, then a follow-up appearance against St Johnstone a week later. Johnston’s dad Allan, the former Hearts, Rangers and Scotland winger, was on hand to temper expectations — and frustrations — when a run in the team didn’t materialise. For that, Johnston can be grateful now in the knowledge that he returned from Cove in January primed for the stunning streak of form that has now transformed his life. Johnston explained: ‘I was confident coming back here from Cove in mid-season. Mind you, I’d felt as if I was ready when I was about 16!
‘That was just me believing in myself; I think you need to as a player.
‘I’d got a taste of the first team when I’d just turned 17. As soon as I got that, I was buzzing and wanted it every week. You’re a young boy thinking: “I can do this”. You just want to take on the world.
‘Dad and everyone around me
told me I needed to be patient, wait my time and that’s when I got my loans to Queen of the South then Cove.
‘I feel I made the most of them. My dad was right all along — he normally is.’
Johnson snr enjoyed a spell in France with Rennes. Whether it’s part of a plan to be a football wanderer or not, his fast-maturing son is learning Spanish.
‘It’s going well and I enjoy it,’ said Johnston. ‘It helps take my mind off football, which is important. I’ve always wanted to be able to speak another language. It would be amazing to go places and speak to people in their own language.’
The right-back may well be doing so in an eclectic, multinational dressing room somewhere next season, such is the scale of the interest in signing him.
Motherwell manager
Stuart Kettlewell said he had no knowledge of the player’s reported visit to Norwich City’s training ground recently. Certainly, the Canaries would not be alone in trying to persuade Johnston to flee the Fir Park nest this summer.
The player concedes that leaving Lanarkshire soon is a distinct possibility, although one specific dynamic will be at the forefront of his choosy approach.
‘The key is to keep playing every week and that will be such an important thing for me,’ he added. ‘I’ve spoken to a few boys the same age and they can get frustrated if they’re not playing.
‘Playing abroad would be amazing. You have to try something different sometimes. If that opportunity comes, I’ll think about it. For now, though, it’s about concentrating on Motherwell finishing as high up the league as possible.’
After a midweek trip to Livingston and hosting Dundee United next Sunday, Johnston will collect his individual award then turn his attention to the future. Dad isn’t on the premises but remains a phone call away in North Carolina, where he’s coaching in an academy.
When asked if it was tough approaching a career crossroads while his guiding light worked on the other side of the Atlantic, Johnston said: ‘To be honest, I’m getting older now. I need to grow up. I’m learning to cook for myself and doing the washing, stuff like that. I’ve got to learn for myself.
‘It’s alright that he’s away but he still phones me and he’s always there if I need to talk.’
MAX JOHNSTON was speaking as he collected the 2023 DoubleTree By Hilton SFWA Scottish SPFL Young Player Of The Year award.
Dad told me I needed to be patient and he was right all along — he usually is!