Johnson: Give me worthy contract or I quit Fulham

There was a time when Andrew Johnson thought he might never play again.

But after battling back from a career threatening injury he appears to be heading out of the door at Fulham in the best form of his career.

Johnson’s contract expires at the end of the season and despite scoring eight goals in as many games, the club are prepared to let him leave by offering him a deal that doesn’t reflect his true worth to the club.

Johnson, 30, is a placid character; a model ­professional who values family life rather than ­abusing a privileged ­position in the sport.

But at a time when he is likely to sign his last big ­contract there will be no room for sentiment as he contemplates his next career move.

Johnson plays down the ­contractual row and has no wish to come into conflict with his club.

“They have made me an offer to stay and I don’t feel it’s ­appropriate to go into the ­details of that offer,” he said.

“But I have to take into ­account many things before I can commit my future to the club and I feel the contract should reflect my worth.

“It will be the last big ­contract of my career and ­primarily I have to do what is right by my family.

“And if that contract doesn’t reflect that then I will weigh up my options.

“I have faced adversity in my career but I would like to think the Fulham supporters have always appreciated that I have given my best when I played.”

It is fair to say they probably do after giving him a standing ovation on his return to action some 14 months after some critics had ­completely written him off.

After back-to-back injuries and stop-start attempts to ­return, Johnson’s knee was seriously damaged in a ­collision with Blackburn’s Chris Samba. He had to undergo ­pioneering surgery in ­Colorado, performed by ­Richard Steadman, the world renowned specialist in his field.

“There is no doubt I owe him my career,” said Johnson.

“The odds were stacked against me making a full ­recovery.

“He openly admitted it was the second biggest area he had ever had to repair, performing state of the art microsurgery that repairs and re-grows the cartilige in your knee.

“I remember walking into his office and his walls were covered in shirts from famous sports stars thanking him for saving their careers.”

Following successful ­surgery the road to recovery through rehabilitation was the biggest challenge for Johnson.

He recalled: “It was hard. Without dedication and support from my family and the medical staff at Fulham I would never have come through this.

“At one point I had to sit on my sofa with a machine that rotated my knee 80 to 90 ­degrees for 8 hours a day.

“And even after that, when you have become the ­forgotten man in many people’s eyes, you have to go through ­arduous rehabilitation.”

Naturally, as Johnson battled to regain his fitness, there was always self-doubt even for such a strong minded ­individual.

“I think that’s natural,” he continued.

“You are hesistant initially and after a very serious injury it takes time to recover and restore your confidence.”

Now, with the injury well and truly behind him,

Johnson is in the form of his life and showing no ill-­effects as he continues to plunder goals in the Premier League and Europe at an alarming rate.

His form has been so good that England boss Fabio Capello recently included him in his provisional squad.

“Naturally I’m delighted with my form but I have ­always worked extremely hard to be the best that I can and that will never change,” he added.

It all seems a long way from Steadman’s ­office in Colorado.

But it’s a journey Johnson and the Fulham fans know has been worthwhile.

He said: “I will never forget returning against Wigan last Christmas when the whole stadium gave me a standing ovation.

“You can’t buy support like that.”