Ahead of their trip to AFC Bournemouth, they were the only team in the top five tiers of English football not to secure a league win in 2025, having last picked up three points against Chelsea on December 30th last year.
But in a big game at the Vitality Stadium, Nathan Broadhead and Liam Delap struck to help secure a 2-1 victory, providing a big boost ahead of the final eight games of the campaign.
“It was a huge win,” Johnson said after the match. “It’s been coming in our training, in the games that we’ve played in the league. It was two and a half weeks since we played, we were excited to play and I felt that we showed that we’ve been doing it on the training pitch.
“We’re at our best when – of course, it’s a cliché – we play together. You saw the front lads playing together today, bringing the other lads people play, and it worked.
“I think we’ve done that in the games that we’ve won, and there have been times where we maybe haven’t got the crucial goal, but today we managed to go two goals up. Even though we conceded, we managed to hold on.
Johnson did well to handle Antoine Semenyo and Milos KerkezJohnson did well to handle Antoine Semenyo and Milos Kerkez (Image: Ross Halls)
“We were together at the back as well. It looked really good. It’s all positive.”
The gap to Wolves – who beat West Ham 1-0 at Molineux on Tuesday night – remains nine points. The two sides meet at Portman Road this weekend, where Town know a win would cut the gap to six.
Many expect that it’s a season that will end in relegation, but Johnson feels that they have what it takes to pull off a huge shock and avoid the drop.
“It’s doable,” he argued. “We’re confident we can do it.
“It [the win] gives us confidence, momentum. We’ll go back on the training field and we’ll be confident. We’ll be ready for the game on Saturday.
“Every game is must-win, that’s the normal life of a Premier League player. You have to win.
“There’s no real pressure for us. The expectation is at a decent level and we’re enjoying being in the Premier League.”
It was a particularly special night for Broadhead, who has had a tough campaign to this point. He missed the first chunk through injury and has been in and out of the team since then.
Against Bournemouth, however, he grabbed his first Premier League goal, getting Ipswich up and running in Dorset.
Nathan Broadhead scored his first Premier League goal to open the scoringNathan Broadhead bagged his first Premier League goal to open the scoring (Image: Ross Halls)
“I’m buzzing for Broadie, we’re so happy for him,” Johnson enthused. “He’s done so well all season – in training, in games. He really deserves that. He’s a top player and hopefully he can get some more.”
It was also a big evening for Delap, who put his team 2-0 up, ending his five-match run without a goal.
“You see his quality,” Johnson explained. “There have been times where it hasn’t quite happened for him, but today he got a free shot at goal. That’s what he can do.
“He’s a top player.”
Johnson, on the other hand, took his chance. Like Broadhead, his starts have been intermittent, but he was given the nod against Bournemouth, playing in an advanced role on the right side where he impacted both ends of the pitch.
“I think I worked hard for the team, put in a good shift and was positive going forward against a tough opponent,” he argued.
“[Milos] Kerkez has been brilliant this season. To try and stifle him as much as I could – it’s not easy, I’m not going to do it every time.
“It felt like we did a good job down our side, everyone else did a good job. To chip in and earn a win is sweet.”
The 25-year-old ran his socks off at the Vitality Stadium. He was visibly exhausted by the time he was substituted deep into stoppage time, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
“That’s how it should be every week,” he chuckled. “Every week, you should come off the pitch and know you’ve worked hard for the win, for your team and did the hard running.
“I felt everyone did that tonight.”
For Ipswich, this has obviously been an incredibly tough period.
Their dip in form has seen them lose track on Wolves and there’s an external consensus that the season is reaching an early conclusion. Johnson, however, claims that the squad have managed to stay positive despite recent results.
“It’s negative when you lose, it’s not a nice feeling,” he said. “You look at the table, you’re in a spot and you’ve not moved.
“I thought we kept our heads well. We’ve continued to train as we always have and I feel like things are starting to come together in training.
“We feel like we’re on the same wavelength now and you saw that tonight. The second goal was brilliant, the first goal was brilliant as well.
“I feel like that’s coming. Hopefully we haven’t left it too late.”
This win means a lot to Town’s players and staff, but also for the fans, who have travelled up and down the country waiting for that first win of the calendar year. Johnson was delighted that his side were finally able to reward them.
“Coming to Bournemouth on a Wednesday evening – to come is just amazing,” he concluded.
“Thousands of fans, to come here and support us – probably the best that they have all season. Being a late one, they won’t get back until late. It’s great for them to keep showing us that love and support.
“That probably gave us the extra drive for the win. Hearts out to them.”