How Brennan Johnson impressed MOTD pundit amid unbelievable moment in Wales loss vs Portugal

Everton's Brennan Johnson didn't enjoy his best performance in a Wales shirt on Thursday evening.

The 25-year-old has enjoyed a mixed start to life as an Everton player since his summer move from Crystal Palace.

From his first seven games in all competitions he's scored and provided one assist, but is yet to get off the mark in the Premier League.

Despite this, he's already establishing himself as an important starting player in David Moyes' side.

He remains a key player for Craig Bellamy and Wales too, and has been included in their UEFA Nations League team for this international break.

The Dragons' first task was a trip to Lisbon for a clash with Portugal on Thursday, and Johnson played the full 90 minutes.

What did John Hartson say about Brennan Johnson for Wales?

Wales ran out narrow 1-0 losers against Portugal, which is no disgrace for Cymru whatsoever.

Jorge Jesus' side are the seventh-ranked side in world football according to FIFA's rankings, with Wales sitting 38th.

As a result, the home side were largely expected to beat Bellamy's boys pretty comfortably, but that wasn't the case.

Starting on the left of a front three, Johnson was at the heart of Wales' biggest chance of the night to find the equaliser.

Latching onto a ball over the top, the Everton forward looped the ball across goal from a tight angle which hit the crossbar.

The ball bounced into the six-yard box and was begging to be put into the net, but Lewis Koumas and Dan James got in a tangle and the chance was passed up.

Speaking on Match of the Day Wales via BBC Sport, John Hartson picked this moment out in particular to praise Johnson.

"We missed chances. I'm not criticising any of the forwards because you have to be in those positions to score them," he said.

"I liked the way Brennan Johnson never gave his opportunity up, Lewis Koumas and Dan James got in each other's way, but I cannot believe we didn't get an equaliser there. I thought we were so unfortunate."

So, whilst Hartson was reluctant to criticise Johnson's performance, the numbers from his performance suggested it would've been warranted.

Why Johnson didn't cover himself in glory for Wales vs Portugal

Naturally, it's important to take into account that Wales were going up against one of Europe's best sides in the shape of Portugal.

Johnson's direct opponent, Barcelona's Joao Cancelo, is a very classy full-back and a tough player for any winger to go up against.

However, the Everton winger's performance still left plenty to be desired in Lisbon.

Per FotMob, Johnson completed 83 per cent of his passes accurately, created zero chances and put his only effort of the game off target.

He also played just one pass into the final third, was inaccurate with his two cross attempts, was caught offside once and won just one tackle.

Johnson was also dispossessed once, committed one foul and was dribbled past on one occasion, as well as taking just three touches in Portugal's box.

So, his place in Bellamy's starting lineup could be under threat when Wales take on Denmark in their next Nations League game this Sunday.