Johnson Focused on Orlando Opener

The time for auditions is over.

Preseason has come to an end and now NYCFC’s collective focus has turned to the opening day of the MLS season.

Sean Johnson could make his competitive debut for his new team at Orlando City on Sunday and the goalkeeper has revealed his excitement going into a huge week.

Arriving from Chicago Fire via a trade with Atlanta United, the 27-year old has impressed throughout preseason in Florida, Ecuador and Tucson and is now ready to take his form onto the biggest stage.

He told NYCFC.com: “I’m really looking forward to Orlando now and playing in their new stadium.

“For me, the guys have been fantastic throughout preseason. At the end of the tournament in Tucson, everybody’s focus was to finish on a strong note and that’s set the message that we’ll take going in.

“I can’t describe the feeling to start a new year with a new team. I’m excited about the group we have here and the new season.”

Johnson was one of the standout performers in NYCFC’s final friendly against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday.

His penalty save ensured that Patrick Vieira’s men finished off their preparations for the season with a win which he described as “important” in setting the tone for Orlando and beyond.

“We spoke about it before the match that with the string of results we’ve had we thought we were getting better but we needed something to show for it,” Johnson said.

“Our goal for this match was to win - to find a way to win and it wasn’t easy – we haven’t been up in a few matches and then it’s about managing a game when the minutes are dying off and learning to close a game.

“I think we did really well, we had moments where we picked each other up and had to fight for one another and I think, for me, that’s what we can take into the Regular Season.

“The new guys were great considering it was our first game together – chemistry is an important thing.

“For myself, learning their tendencies - where they like the ball and knowing who does what in each situation. It’s something you learn through time but for me, it was important coming up with the victory and I think everyone can take away a lot of confidence from that, including the new guys.”

Johnson has a reputation as something of a penalty kick specialist, going back to his time in Chicago and his new fans got an opportunity to see this in action in this final preseason game.

It was a terrific stop from the goalkeeper as he got to Soony Saad’s strike and smothered the ball to prevent the rebound.

His secret? Just freeing his mind of all other distractions.

“To be honest, I was just in the moment,” Johnson reflected. “I just freed my mind and you’ve just got to take a jump on it and I managed to secure it, so it was a big moment for us at 1-0 but that’s my job to come up when the team needs me and that was the occasion.

“I take pride in clean sheets, from keeping the ball away from the net and it was a good team performance.

“I think me, Max (Chanot) and Alex (Callens) talked about before the game that we’ve got to be on the same page, we’ve got to hold ourselves accountable and cover for each other – be there for each other when something happens and that’s the way we way we came away with the victory today.”