What’s Next for Adam Johnson?

Adam Johnson was involved in a mid-week spat with Roberto Mancini, leaving neutrals wondering where the Englishman is headed for next.

So let’s review what’s happened.

40 minutes played between Manchester City and Villarreal. The English side are 1-0 down to the Spanish outfit and Mancini decides to do a tactical change. Hold up. Since when do you do a tactical change right before half time? Never seen that happen too often these days. What normally happens is the manager waits for half time, where he then rings the changes.

But nonetheless, Mancini made the decision to bring off Adam Johnson and bring on Gareth Barry to ‘prevent Villarreal from extending their lead’.

Later on in the day, Adam Johnson decided to go and tweet:

Obviously disappointed to come off last night, these things happen was tactical.

Hard to compete with world class strikers

But the early signs are showing, and it won’t be long before Adam Johnson asks for consent to leave the Eastlands. Mancini himself later explained the move:

We were conceding four or five counter-attack.

We needed to have more players in the middle and I wanted to move Yaya Toure behind Edin Dzeko.

It was not because Adam was playing badly, he was playing very well, but it was a tactical decision.

But Adam Johnson will have another of pursuers should his situation at Manchester City remain like this until the transfer window reopens in January 2012. His relationship with Roberto Mancini is seemingly straining and with interest from several big clubs, it won’t be long before the Englishman decides to move.

Add to the fact that Johnson wants to be considered for Fabio Capello’s EURO 2012 squad, where he is unlikely to earn a place from the Manchester City bench and you get a move to another club in the January transfer window.

The clubs interested in the skillful winger include Liverpool FC, Arsenal FC and even Sunderland, who have repeatedly tried to sign the winger ever since they were first interested in him way back in 2009.

Take my bet: he’s going to leave Manchester City.