George Johnston (footballer, born 1998)

George Johnston
Personal information
Full name George Thomas Johnston[1]
Date of birth (1998-09-01) 1 September 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth Manchester, England
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.81 m)[2]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Bolton Wanderers
Number 6
Youth career
2008–2019 Liverpool
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2021 Feyenoord 4 (0)
2021 → Wigan Athletic (loan) 22 (1)
2021– Bolton Wanderers 86 (3)
International career‡
2018 Scotland U20 1 (0)
2019–2020 Scotland U21 10 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:33, 16 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11:40, 7 June 2021 (UTC)

George Thomas Johnston (born 1 September 1998) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL League One club Bolton Wanderers. Born in England, Johnston represents Scotland at youth international level.

Career

Liverpool

Johnston came through the Academy at Liverpool, making one first-team appearance in a preseason friendly against Torino at Anfield in August 2018.[3]

Feyenoord

In August 2019, he moved to Feyenoord on a permanent deal.[4] Feyenoord paid Liverpool £300,000, and the deal included a 30% sell-on clause.[5]

Wigan Athletic (loan)

On 22 January 2021, Johnston joined League One side Wigan Athletic on loan for the remainder of the 2020–21 season.[6] He scored his first goal for Wigan in a 3–0 win against Milton Keynes Dons on 6 March 2021.[7]

Bolton Wanderers

On 4 June 2021, Johnston returned to League One, this time joining Bolton Wanderers on a three-year deal.[8] He turned down Wigan to join Bolton.[9] His competitive debut came on 7 August in a 3–3 draw against Milton Keynes Dons, where he made a goal line clearance.[10] On 2 April 2023, he came on as a substitute in the 2023 EFL Trophy final against Plymouth Argyle. Bolton went on to win 4–0.[11] On 8 July, Johnston suffered an injury in a pre-season friendly at Bamber Bridge and three days later the club confirmed that he was likely to miss the whole of the following season.[12] In spite of this, on 1 August, Johnston signed a new deal taking him up to 2026.[13]

International career

Johnston has represented Scotland at under-20 and under-21 level.[14]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 5 October 2024[15]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Feyenoord 2019–20 Eredivisie 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 0
2020–21 Eredivisie 4 0 0 0 — 0 0 4 0
Total 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Wigan Athletic (loan) 2020–21 League One 22 1 — — — 22 1
Bolton Wanderers 2021–22 League One 43 2 1 0 2 0 2[a] 0 48 2
2022–23 League One 36 1 0 0 2 0 7[b] 0 45 1
2023–24 League One 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2024–25 League One 7 0 0 0 3 0 2[a] 0 12 0
Total 86 3 1 0 7 0 11 0 105 3
Career total 112 4 1 0 7 0 11 0 131 4
  1. ^ a b Appearances in EFL Trophy
  2. ^ Five appearances in EFL Trophy, two appearances in League One play-offs

Honours

Bolton Wanderers

References

  1. ^ "EFL squad list 2021/22 & U21 registered contracted players" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  2. ^ "George Johnston". Bolton Wanderers F.C. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  3. ^ "Matchdetails from Liverpool - Torino F.C. played on Tuesday 7 August 2018". LFCHistory.net. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  4. ^ "George Johnston completes transfer to Feyenoord". Liverpool F.C. 7 August 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  5. ^ The Bolton News, Bolton Wanderers' new signing George Johnston - 10 things you might not know: "The move was reported to have cost Feyenoord around £300,000, with a 30 per cent sell on fee inserted into the players' contract."
  6. ^ "George Johnston signs for Wigan Athletic". Wigan Athletic FC. 22 January 2021. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  7. ^ "Wigan 3-0 MK Dons". BBC. 6 March 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
  8. ^ "Wanderers Recruit Young Defender". Bolton Wanderers F.C. 4 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  9. ^ The Bolton News: "Bolton Wanderers star George Johnston reveals why he turned down Wigan Athletic"
  10. ^ BBC Sport: "Bolton Wanderers 3–3 Milton Keynes Dons"
  11. ^ a b "Bolton Wanderers 4-0 Plymouth Argyle". BBC Sport.
  12. ^ "Injury Update: George Johnston". Bolton Wanderers F.C. 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  13. ^ "DONE DEAL FOR JONNO". Bolton Wanderers F.C. 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  14. ^ George Johnston at the Scottish Football Association
  15. ^ George Johnston at Soccerway. Retrieved 16 October 2024.