Ian Wright delivers ‘exciting’ verdict on Nottingham Forest star

Ian Wright has said that the quality of young players coming through is exciting for Wales, picking out Brennan Johnson for particular praise.

The Nottingham Forest academy graduate earned his ninth cap for Wales on Tuesday night as Rob Page’s side took on Czech Republic. The 20-year-old assisted Wales’ goal in the 1-1 draw.

Following the game, Wright gave his assessment on Wales’ young stars, saying that the future looks bright for the nation. “When you’re seeing players like that coming through, it’s got to be quite exciting for the Wales squad, simply because they are quality players,” he said on ITV’s highlights show.

“Brennan Johnson, every time you see him he looks better, 11 goals, I think it’s five assists this season in the Championship. We’re talking about a team that is on the move, they’re improving.”

Wright wasn’t the only pundit to praise Johnson’s impact on the game. Fellow pundit Roy Keane also picked out the Forest man when looking at Wales’ goal that was set up by the winger.

“Johnson, we see do this week in week out, nice and brave, a lot of players would have gone down. And you can get these wrong, these little balls back, a lovely weight on it and it’s exciting days ahead for Wales.”

He also names two big players still in the Wales squad that will help the development of Johnson and the other young players. Something that will also be of benefit to Forest.

“They’ve got some really good young players.”, he added, “They’re all playing regularly and it’s great when you have examples like Bale and Ramsey to aim for.”