Seth Johnson will be a familiar name to those of a Leeds United or Derby County persuasion. The midfielder will likely be remembered more fondly by fans of the latter than the former, though, given he became infamous for the size of the wage packet he picked up when moving from the Rams to the Whites.
We take a look at the short but eventful career of the once-capped England international who made headlines both on and off the field.
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Signing for Leeds
Johnson’s wages at Elland Road made him infamous
Johnson started his career at Crewe Alexandra, spending three years at the club after coming through the academy and helping them avoid relegation from the old First Division (the second tier of English football before its rebranding as the Championship) before moving to Premier League side Derby in the summer of 1999.
Derby finished just one place above the relegation zone in each of his first two campaigns with the Rams but – despite the team’s struggles – Johnson caught the eye with his combative style and hard work in the centre of the park. Although he showed flashes of promise, it came as a surprise when, in November 2000, the midfielder earned his first – and only – England cap, a substitute appearance in a 1-0 friendly defeat against Italy, when he came on for Gareth Barry.
Still, Johnson’s star was on the rise and in the summer of 2001, Leeds came calling for his signature. The Whites’ chairman at the time, Peter Ridsdale, handled negotiations with the midfielder, then still only 21 years of age. It came as a great surprise, then, when the young Englishman was offered a contract so lucrative that it made him the second-highest-paid player in the Premier League, more than tripling the salary he had been earning at Derby overnight.
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Struggles due to injury
Johnson became an expensive mistake for Leeds
Given the size of the salary Johnson was being afforded, expectations were unrealistically high for the young midfielder upon his arrival at Elland Road, with fans expecting him to justify his wages with performances of a level and consistency that the player was unlikely to produce, especially at his age.
It did not help, then, that his four years in West Yorkshire were marred by injury issues that forced Johnson into seven surgeries, reducing him to a mere 59 appearances in all competitions, from which he scored four goals and registered six assists. It was certainly not the return on investment supporters and club officials would have hoped for from a player earning such a sizeable wage packet.
In 2005, with Leeds now in the Championship after suffering the ignominy of relegation in the 2003/04 season, Johnson was released and returned to Derby – also now in the Championship – on a free transfer. He resurrected his form and helped the Rams win promotion via the playoffs in 2007, but suffered a knee injury in the final that would prove to be insurmountable, ending his career at the age of just 28.
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What Johnson is doing now
Has contributed to films such as Life of Pi, Avatar and Shaun of the Dead
Since his football career was brought to a premature end at Wembley in May 2007 as Derby beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 to secure a return to the English top flight, Johnson has enjoyed plenty of success in his various new, off-field ventures.
The former midfielder now works with an old Derby team-mate – Steve Howard, who also played for Leicester City and Luton Town. The pair are listed as directors at Greygoose Property Investments Ltd, a property investment firm that primarily deals with real estate in the north-east. Additionally, Johnson is a member of Ingenious Film Partners 3 LLP, a company which has provided financial backing for a whole host of successful films, including Life of Pi, Avatar and Shaun of the Dead.
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