Former ace Michael Johnson – once tipped to be the next big thing in English – quit the game at just 24 and found work as an estate agent. Johnson burst onto the scene in 2006 with a series of impressive performances for City, scoring goals and providing assists. However, injuries and self-doubt led him to walk away from the beautiful game.
Ex-City team-mate hailed him as an "outstanding" midfielder reminiscent of German legend Michael Ballack, while former manager Sven-Goran Eriksson believed he was destined to become England's "next big star for England". Now aged 36, Johnson has opened up about his struggles with personal and physical issues, confessing that it was a "relief" to leave football behind and focus on his new career in real estate and car sales. Johnson's meteoric rise had him earmarked for greatness from the get-go, with Liverpool even slapping in a bid for the talent in 2008.
But after a spate of injuries and battles with mental health, the Urmston-born player found it tough to match the hype. Opening up on his struggles in a 2020 interview with , Johnson bravely opened up about why he ditched his budding career at City and dished on his "self-esteem" struggles. "My issue was always self-esteem.
I just felt really low in myself. I didn't ever feel I was as good as the kids next to me," Johnson said. "I'm not talking football-wise.
I knew I was good at football. I'm talking about how I felt as a person. I used to think, 'You're not like those lads there.
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