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Former Sunderland manager Lee Johnson has opened up about his experience coaching Lommel SK in Belgium, where he successfully led the team to promotion last season. This achievement marked the club’s first ascent to the Belgian top flight in two decades. Johnson’s move to manage abroad signified a significant shift in his career, and he has described the experience as both challenging and rewarding.
Lee Johnson said: “People sometimes don’t understand how sacrificial it can be to take these opportunities abroad, the impact on family life, it was a huge adaptation. From my experience I have learned so much. If you had said to me I would go to Belgium and learn these points about myself, the culture, a different style of football, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. I have worked on myself as a coach and a leader and I am super grateful for what I have received back from the coaches and the staff and everyone in the town.”
Johnson’s venture into Belgian football has been his first professional role outside of the UK, and he has embraced the challenges that come with managing in a foreign league. He likened the competitive nature of the Belgian division to the English Championship, emphasizing the quality and physicality of the teams involved.
Lee Johnson continued: “It’s a huge jump, it is a very strong division. For the English public it is the equivalent of getting promoted from the Championship to the Premier League, the quality, the physicality, teams with European experience. It is the same from a managerial point of view. Momentum can be so important, the passion from the stand and the players, it gives you a chance. We are going in there to make an impression not just trying to survive.”
Johnson’s successful campaign with Lommel SK has fueled his ambitions to continue growing as a manager. He is determined to make a lasting impact in his coaching career and aims to manage at the highest level possible.
Lee Johnson said: “The first thing as a coach is you’re in the moment because we have to make good decisions to be sustainable in such a top league. I want to manage as high as I can for as long as I can. I am at a really good stage of my career. I understand what all elements of management look like.”
Reflecting on his tenure at Sunderland, Johnson spent just over a year at the helm, from December 2020 to January 2022. During his time at the Stadium of Light, he led the team to win the EFL Trophy at Wembley and secured a fourth-place finish in League One. However, Sunderland’s play-off campaign ended in the semi-finals against Lincoln City. Johnson’s experiences both in England and Belgium have shaped his managerial philosophy, and he remains eager to take on new challenges in his career.
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