Johnson: Jemal Pierre (Jemal)

2007-2007 (Leeds Player Details)(Player Details)

Striker

Born: Paterson, New Jersey, USA: 03-05-1984

Debut: v Queens Park Rangers (h): 20-02-2007

6’0” 11st 6lb (2007)

Though born in the United States, Johnson's family moved to Macclesfield when he was five years old. Originally signed by Manchester United, for whom he graduated through their youth development scheme for five years, Johnson joined Blackburn Rovers' Academy when he was sixteen. After becoming a top scoring threat in their Under-Nineteen squad, he made the regular reserves team in 2003. In the 2004/05 season, the speedy striker scored six goals in fifteen appearances for the reserves, leading them to the top of their table. Coaches took note of his talent and determination and Johnson was added to the senior squad of Blackburn Rovers in December of 2004. Johnson made his first team debut as a substitute in Rovers' third round FA Cup tie at Cardiff City on 8th January 2005. He scored his first senior goal, in his first start on 29th January 2005 at Ewood Park, in Blackburn's Fourth Round victory over Colchester United. He signed a two-and-a-half year deal to keep him at Blackburn in September 2005. During the 2005-06 season he spent periods on loan to Preston North End and Darlington. He was at Deepdale from 28th October 2005 for a month and he scored once in three League games, two of which he started. He was with the Quakers from 10th March to 23rd April and he scored three times from nine League starts. Whilst at Ewood he had six substitute appearances in the League and scored once in one start and three games from the bench in the F.A. Cup. Johnson joined Wolves on 17th August 2006 for an undisclosed fee, on a two year contract. He scored two match-winning goals in his first two games for the club, but by the end of the season had scored just one more goal and was put on the transfer list. He joined Leeds United on an initial one month loan on 19th February 2007, but he had a frustrating time there, mainly featuring on the subs bench. With Leeds he made his debut from the bench, coming on for Robbie Blake, after seventy-two minutes, at home to Queens Park Rangers, on 20th February 2007. The next game was at Wolves and they would not allow him to play against his own club. At Birmingham City in the following game, he came on for David Healy, this time after sixty-seven minutes. He sat unused on the bench for the next encounter at home to Sheffield Wednesday. He made the starting eleven for the next game at home to Luton Town and had eighty-five minutes before being replaced by David Healy. He again made the team at Leicester City but only lasted forty-four minutes before receiving an head injury in a collision with the Leicester keeper and again being replaced by David Healy. The head injury kept him out of the next game at Southend United and after Leeds extended his loan spell for the rest of the season, he then sat unused on the bench at home to Preston North End, Plymouth Argyle, did not feature at all at Colchester United or at Southampton, and again was unused at home to Burnley and Ipswich Town, before finally getting a full game at Derby County in the final fixture of the season. So his Leeds career lasted two hundred and sixty minutes without scoring. The Yorkshire club finished bottom of the Championship and entered administration, forcing Johnson to return to the West Midlands. Wolves’ boss Mick McCarthy transfer listed Johnson on his return to Molineux in May 2007. He scored three times in twenty-four appearances, ten of which were from the bench. They comprised three goals in the League from fourteen starts and six substitute appearances and he also came from the bench in three F.A. Cup ties and one League Cup tie. On 31st August 2007 Johnson signed a two year contract with Milton Keynes Dons on a free transfer, but once again he found that he featured more from the bench than in the starting team and that his goals were at a premium, nevertheless he was a member of the Johnstone's Paint Tropy winning side and the Football League Two Championship winning team in 2007-08. His contract with MK Dons ran out on 19th May 2009 and he was one of the six players that Manager Roberto Di Matteo had on his clearance list. However on 13th July 2009 he signed a two year contact with the club, under new boss Paul Ince. He started the 2009-10 with a bang, scoring a hat-trick in a pre-season friendly with Northampton Town but it did not last and he had lost his first team place by November 2009. On 18th January 2010 he was loaned to Stockport County for the rest of the season and scored twice in sixteen League games of which two were as a substitute, but it was not enough to prevent their relegation from League One. He then went across the Atlantic in July 2010, where he had trials with D.C. United and Kansas City Wizards and also went on to New Zealand to trial with Wellington Phoenix in the Australian A-League, but all came to nothing. He went on loan to Port Vale on 16th September 2010 for a month and started one League game but was called from the bench on five further occasions and he also started one Johnstone's Paint Trophy game, all without scoring. In January 2011 Johnson and MK Dons came to a mutual agreement to cancel his contract. His record with M.K. Dons was twelve League goals in ninety-six appearances, of which forty-six were from the bench. He had scored two F.A. Cup goals in three starts and one game as a substitute, scored twice in three League Cup starts and one gamefrom the bench and scored twice in nine starts in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy. Now a free agent, he rejected an offer from Southend United and instead chose to join Lokomotiv Sofia on a two and a half year contract. Johnson ended his season in the best possible manner, netting his first goal for Lokomotiv Sofia to help the team secure fourth place and a spot in the 2012-13 Europa League. He had taken to the pitch in the twelfth minute and in the sixty-fifth minute, the American found himself in a good shooting position but at distance, and he took a chance with a long range effort. It took a deflection off of a Slavia defender but flew into the net for the winner. He had started ten games and come on four times as a substitute and has been substituted on three occasions and had not scored until that final game. Despite the season's outcome Johnson and Lokomotiv Sofia mutually agreed to terminate the contract and Johnson returned to England and signed a one year contract with Southend United on 1st July 2011. He had made one start and four substitute appearances in the League and one start in the League Cup and a substitute appearance in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy before he was arrested after a fight in a nightclub in Ilford on 28th October 2011. Southend suspended him for two weeks while they reviewed his situation and three weeks later they announced that he had been sacked. On 17th February 2012, after a trial, he was signed by Football Conference South side Dover Athletic until the end of the season. He made his debut for them on 18th February 2012 and scored from the spot in the thirty-fifth minute as they won 3-1 against Truro City, with Johnson being substituted in the sixty-ninth minute. He started six League games and came on as a substitute in four more, but did not add to his first goal. He was not retained at the end of the season.