Sam Johnstone - now retired

[brentastonb6]

I'm still positive about him, It's early days granted but it seemed a nasty bounce beat him IMO , let's not write him off just yet, how about something really radical - supporting him and building him up ? I remember seeing DeGea when he first arrived at Man Ure and he looked decidedly dodgy for quite a while. I'm not saying Sam will be as good but I can see potential and don't buy into all this two great games = worldbeater , two shaky ones = scrapheap

[SoccerHQ]

We binned Gollini though because he was conceding cheap goals like parrying shots back into the six yard box for strikers to tap in.

You'd like to think his replacement wouldn't be doing the same thing.

[brontebilly]

To get out of this league you need an experienced keeper like Leeds have Green etc. We haven't had a decent keeper since Friedel.

I might be in the minority but I never rated Friedel as decent.

Johnstone looks nervy so far and other teams can sense it as they did with Gollini let's be honest.

Bunn is awful and certainly not the answer. 

[brentastonb6]

We binned Gollini though because he was conceding cheap goals like parrying shots back into the six yard box for strikers to tap in.

You'd like to think his replacement wouldn't be doing the same thing.

I would have probably stuck with Gollini based on my thought process- I think our coaches need to look up the term 'coach '  and f*#King start doing some if it .

[J]

At least Johnstone will come for crosses, something that couldn't be said for Gollini.

[pbavfckuwait]

The comparisons with De Gea are not worth making, if he comes good next season will he still be wearing a Villa shirt??
If we were to loan a keeper, I would rather have gone with some experience and kept Gollini here, Gollini, Johnstone, much of a muchness and both average at best.

[brian green]

Not a cigarette paper between them except we own one and are borrowing the other while paying two lots of wages (Atalanta will not be paying much you can be sure). How very Villa.  See page 477, para B) How To Piss the Owner's Money Up The Wall Needlessly Handbook.

[mr underhill]

as written by AVFC, it's an international best seller.

[ASHTONVILLA]

If we insist on having a young GK learning on the job, at least let be our own player so we get the benefit in later years.

Stupid signing.

We should have signed up an experienced player, even on loan, to take pressure off Gollini.

[Villafirst]

Terrible error for the first goal. Trouble is, his confidence will be in question now.

[ozzjim]

What is Sarkic up to now? I saw the young Swedish lad has 5 straight clean sheets for the reserves, is Sarkic injured? Surely we would be better off giving one of those 2 10 games rather than Johnstone who looks a complete waste of time to me. I fully expect him to be amazing in the future now.

[LeeB]

Whilst on the face of it I don't see much between Gollini and this lad, wasn't there some talk that Gollini wasn't happy because he'd lost the Italian coach? I think the change may have come about not just for purely footballing reasons.

[OzVilla]

If we insist on having a young GK learning on the job, at least let be our own player so we get the benefit in later years.

Stupid signing.

We should have signed up an experienced player, even on loan, to take pressure off Gollini.

This. Utterly pointless signing on loan another promsing rookie to replace our own promising rookie we actually own, particularly when it's a goalkeeper.

Just baffling.  Or am I missing something.

[KRS]

Whilst on the face of it I don't see much between Gollini and this lad, wasn't there some talk that Gollini wasn't happy because he'd lost the Italian coach? I think the change may have come about not just for purely footballing reasons.

Yeah I remember reading something like that and it was related to the coaching staff or coaching methods. I'm pretty sure he also said that he doesn't want to come back and will be pushing for a move back to Italy or elsewhere.

[Risso]

The trouble is, when a young keeper's confidence goes, it's rare that they recover it quickly. Look at Encks and Carson.