Why Rotherham United had to give Viktor Johansson a release option
ROTHERHAM United have shone a light on the contract talks that led to goalkeeper Viktor Johansson having a clause that allowed him to depart for a cut-price fee if they dropped out of the Championship.
In January 2023, the Swede was coming towards the end of his deal and the Millers were keen for him to sign a new one.
Johansson, one of the club's standout performers in recent times, agreed to new, improved two-and-a-half-year terms but only on the proviso that he could leave for a certain figure in the event of relegation to League One.
Rotherham duly suffered that fate last season and the shot-stopper, despite having a year remaining at AESSEAL New York Stadium, duly moved on to second-tier Stoke City in May.
Director of football recruitment Rob Scott said: “He had six months of his deal left when we started to re-negotiate with him. His agents were as plain as can be that if we didn't put a clause in he would go.
“We could have either had him for six months and then see him go for nothing or put a clause in a new contract.”
The release figure is believed to have been set at an initial £750,000 with potential add-ons taking it beyond the £1-million mark.
“We had to do our best to protect ourselves and get something,” Scott said. “We battled as hard as we could to get the maximum we could for the clause. And we got another 18 months out of him as a player.
“Viktor wanted to stay but he did see his career going into the Championship and even the Premier League. He also wanted to get the number-one spot for Sweden.”
Johansson earned his first Swedish call-up just months after signing on the dotted line for Rotherham and went on to make his international debut while he was still at the club.
Scott led the contract discussions on the Millers' behalf and chief operating officer Paul Douglas said the recruitment chief “did a great job”.
Douglas added: “You have to bear in mind that players have agents who are extremely influential in their lives and their decision-making. Viktor had shown great promise.
“It was a difficult negotiation to get Viktor to stay on; not because Viktor didn't want to stay - he loved it here - but, at the end of the day, he's a young professional footballer who wants to achieve the best he can.
“The clause was something Viktor and his representatives felt very strongly about. They saw his career moving into international circles.”
Johansson was a huge crowd favourite and always appreciated how fans had taken him to their hearts following his release by Leicester City in 2020. On the day of his final match, he paid for 600 pints of beer for supporters at the Cutler's Arms, a pub close to New York.
Douglas refused to confirm the fee that Stoke paid for the 25-year-old, describing it as “undisclosed”.
Meanwhile, Rotherham’s friendly at Stamford on Friday July 19 is pay on the day only. Tickets for the game a day later at Spalding are available on Spalding’s website.