Bristol City boss Lee Johnson continues to impress and his current club are a shining example of why he is one of the best young managers outside the top flight.
When Oldham Athletic appointed Lee Johnson in 2013 to make him the youngest manager in the Football League, at the age of 31, there were few who backed the former Yeovil midfielder to be a success.
However, it did not take long for Johnson to make a name for himself in the third tier. Just a year after being appointed at Oldham, he ensured the club finished just two points off their best league finish since the 2008/09 season.
Barnsley were the next to gamble on the young boss and despite a poor star at Oakwell, Johnson would lead a resurgence to the top six before following in his father’s footsteps and snapping up the opportunity to take the helm at Championship strugglers Bristol City.
Johnson oversaw an inevitable tough start with the club he represented as a player 174 times, but managed to steer the Robins clear of the drop zone.
The 35-year-old’s toughest test yet arrived this season having been given a new kind of pressure to deal with. Vast improvement was expected coming into this season for Bristol City with a renovated stadium and a bigger transfer budget.
Johnson made shrewd signings in the summer, bringing in experience midfielder Gary O’Neil on a free and signing highly rated Chelsea youngster Tammy Abraham on loan.
Abraham is being lauded as the signing of the season in the Championship, netting 10 times in all competitions and helping Bristol to climb to 10th place, just two points outside the play-offs with nine games played.
It is not just the Chelsea starlet who deserves the credit either; Johnson is showing the world of football what a young manager can achieve when given the right tool and an opportunity.
The 35-year-old probably has no right to succeed as a football manager and least of all in the cruel second tier but he has shown he is eager to learn, improve as a coach and make up for experience with astute tactical planning.
Bristol’s huge win at high-flying Fulham on the weekend was only testament to their manager’s impressive managerial style and he’s starting to get the recognition he deserves.
It is not often we get a bright young managerial talent in English football but Johnson is looking like he could be the first young boss since Eddie Howe to make his name heard across the highest levels.
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