'Hits differently' - Sheffield Wednesday man makes Owls admission after tough times
Sheffield Wednesday man, Marvin Johnson, says that he’s glad he held it together when the going got tough at Hillsborough.
The 33-year-old was back in the Owls starting XI in the Championship last weekend as he played his part in the draw with Queens Park Rangers, and is expected to be there again this weekend when they visit Luton Town while Max Lowe waits in the wings.
Johnson has now played more games for Wednesday than any other club in his career, showing up in some big moments along the way since being signed by Darren Moore, but there have been stages where it looked like his time might be cut short. Speaking now, he admits that he’s pleased that he responded how he did in order to wait for his chance when things weren’t exactly going to plan.
“I understand football, and it’s up and down - it happens everywhere,” Johnson told The Star. “There are different players at different clubs who are playing, then not playing, and then staff change and they’re back in - or they’re not. It’s part of the game, it’s out of your control really, as a professional you just have to get on with it… You still need to be in the right place and remember that you’re a professional.
“I’m glad that I held it together and kept my head down and did that, because it changed for me last season and then we had the ‘Great Escape’, which was a feeling we wanted, even if it was in the wrong area in the table.
"But I feel great here, I feel confident here… I know we’ve got a big squad, and I know when we play well the fans will be behind us - you feel confident from the warm-up, that you’ve got an extra man on the pitch, an extra demeanour about you.”
With a promotion medal and that great escape to look back on, Johnson’s had a memorable time with Wednesday so far, but they’re not the only things he’s got out of it - another addition is a song straight out of Shakira’s discography.
“My kids sing it all the time!” Johnson said with a smile when asked about his Waka Waka chant. “But it’s a bit weird, when you’re on the pitch you’re focused on the game, but then I’ll hear little kids singing it, or my own kids singing it, and that hits a bit differently… It is surreal to be fair.”
You might hear it from the stands on Saturday, especially if ‘Neymarv’ performs the same way he did against QPR, and as he sits on 38 goals and assists for the Owls he’ll be itching to edge closer to another milestone in SWFC colours.