I've not come to ISL for fun, I've come to win: Pune City's former EPL defender Roger Johnson

Former Birmingham City defender Roger Johnson says that playing in the Indian Super League will be a huge adventure, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be taking it lightly. The defender, who has close to 500 combined appearances in the Premier League and the Championship, says he’s coming to India to win and not just to get his first taste of football outside England. “This move wasn’t about a step up or a step down, it was about trying something new. But that doesn’t mean I’ve come to the ISL for fun. I have come to win,” the 32-year-old said. Johnson signed for FC Pune City and is clearly their most experienced defender — a no-nonsense tough tackling player, who was the bedrock of Birmingham’s short stint in the Premier League a few years ago. He has also played for Cardiff City, West Ham and Wolverhampton Wolves. [caption id=“attachment_2430742” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Johnson (L) signed for FC Pune City and is clearly their most experienced defender. Getty Images[/caption] Pune City have invested heavily in their squad, completely revamping the one which finished sixth in the inaugural ISL season. In fact, they didn’t retain a single player. New manager David Platt has put together a formidable array of foreign stars including Nicky Shorey, Didier Zokora, Tuncay Sanli, Adrian Mutu, Yendrick Ruiz and Johnson. “It feels at home for me with Pune City. I have Nicky (Shorey) and Steve (Simonsen) through my Premier League days, and there is a fantastic camaraderie which all of us share. David (Platt) is one of the finest managers to work with and a renowned name across Europe — his expertise is definitely helping the team well,” Johnson said.  He was speaking on a conference call from Turkey where the team are currently going through their pre-season routine. Johnson has faced a few relegation battles in his years and has also had to live with three relegations back-to-back in England. For a 32-year-old who has never played outside England, it was only natural to play somewhere that will allow him to cement a place in the history of a nascent league. “England is definitely the best league in the world but India is going to be a challenge. I was at a stage in my career where I thought I should try something new and embrace it completely,” he said. Johnson believes that the Pune side has an excellent mix of Indian and foreign players. Apart from signing defensive stalwart Gouramangi Singh, they also went all out in the auction and roped in Jackichand Singh and Eugeneson Lyngdoh. Both players were part of the India team that recently lost 3-0 loss to Iran in a World Cup qualifier. “The Indian players are setting some real high standards and escalating their game each passing day. Along with the internationals, I think David (Platt) and the management have done very well to set up a good team,” Johnson said. Pune had a distinct Italian flavour last season with Franco Colomba managing the side — and though they were entertaining at times, the victories didn’t come as regularly as they needed. With Platt coming to the team, after assisting Roberto Mancini at Manchester City, the side looks more organised and balanced in all areas. “With the line up of attackers playing ahead of us, I hope they can do the job – it looks good and gives us confidence to get the results and make a difference this time around,” Johnson said. Pune City take on Mumbai City FC in their first match on 5 October.