Former Salford City boss Anthony Johnson has seemingly questioned the decision to sack him after they lost in the League Two play-off final at Wembley.
Johnson, who was joint manager alongside Bernard Morley, was central to the club’s rise through non-league and helped steer the Amies to three promotions in eight years, ending with them getting up to the National League. The Class of 92 then opted for a change, bringing in Gary Alexander.
The Scot got Salford up to League Two at the first time of asking, but Salford will now play in the fourth tier for an eighth successive year despite the money invested in the playing group.
Salford co-owners Gary Neville and David Beckham were in attendance at Wembley as the club sought to play in League One for the first time, but were well beaten by Notts County. Salford had finished fourth and saw off Grimsby in the semi-finals, only to be outplayed in the final.
Johnson then took the opportunity to make his thoughts known and said on social media: “We left Salford City 8 years ago after winning 3 promotions. Since then they’ve won 1 promotion, and that was the season after we’d left with the majority of the squad we put together. I do sometimes wonder…”
Neville has previously expressed regret at sacking Alexander, who they got rid of in 2020 after just five games of the season, despite him going unbeaten up until that point. They’ve since had the likes of Neil Wood and Gary Bowyer at the helm with Karl Robinson now in charge.
View 3 ImagesGary Neville, David Beckham and Paul Scholes were in attendance at Wembley(Image: John Walton/PA Wire)
The ex-MK Dons boss couldn’t get the job done at Wembley and admitted: “We were beaten in every area of the pitch today. I have no qualms with the result. We had too many players that didn’t turn up for the occasion. It hurts. It hurts everybody in there. But this is going to be the lowest ebb in the football club’s history. We have to be better.”
Robinson was still adamant that Salford were firmly on an upward curve. “It’s only going to go in one direction this football club, I have complete confidence in that. I really do,” he said. “I just wish that next year could have been a visual step in the right direction with a league change.”
View 3 ImagesLONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 25: Haji Mnoga of Salford City reacts after conceding his team’s second goal during the League Two Play-Off Final match between Notts County and Salford City at Wembley Stadium on May 25, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Salford only missed out on automatic promotion by just one point. Skipper Luke Garbutt said: “As captain of the team I’m devastated for everyone out there today. It’s a shocking one to take, especially at the home of football.
“But the Club is moving in the right direction, we’ve got to pick ourselves up. It’ll take a while but we’ll react in the right way and be bigger and better next season.”
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