Williams: "I couldn’t have asked for a better reception off the fans. I feel at home already"

Addicks new signing Jonny Williams was delighted with the reception he received from The Valley faithful during his debut on Saturday against Sunderland.

The 25-year-old, who joined the club on Friday, came on as a 68th minute substitute in the 1-1 draw to a chorus of “Jonny, Jonny, Jonny, Jonny Williams”.

The midfielder impressed his new manager with his performance and speaking after the match he said: “It was really nice, I missed playing in that kind of atmosphere.

“I think we deserved a win based on that second half performance but it wasn’t meant to be but I couldn’t have asked for a better reception off the fans. I feel at home already.

“It was a good start, the gaffer was really pleased with the second half performance and I think that’s what we’ve got to focus on. If we create chances like that, we’ll win more games than we don’t.”

For one Charlton fan, the signing of Jonny is something he’s been wanting for a long time. The Welsh international revealed: “One of my good mates from school is a massive Charlton fan, so he’s buzzing. He’s always been on at me to sign for them for a while now. He was delighted to be fair. 

“He predicted it two weeks ago, he knew I might be up for transfer and he put a head on a Charlton shirt and was like ‘mate it’s come true’. I’ll have to get his little kid a little ‘Williams’ shirt, he’ll be buzzing with that.”

Jonny had spent 17 years at Crystal Palace before his transfer to Charlton and he said he had been overwhelmed with the responses since his departure. He said: “It got to a point where I knew if I wasn’t going to play, I had to move on for the good of my career. It was a hard decision. It’s been an emotional couple of days to be honest, with all the messages and memories from fans and friends that I’ve made over the last 17 years, so it was an emotional few days.

“I think I needed it, I’ve only really had positive messages from everyone. Everyone is delighted that I’ve got a fresh start and the boys have taken to me really well in the last couple of days and I’m looking forward to playing as many games as I can in Charlton shirt until the end of the season and see what happens.”

For now, the focus remains on helping Charlton to promotion. Jonny said: “I think we’ve got to look at every game as a potential win. We’re one of the best teams in the league, so we’ve got to go to every game home and away wanting to win games. I think if we can play like we did in the second half (against Sunderland), and I watched the first half against Walsall, we seem strong all over the pitch, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Watch Jonny Williams' post-match press conference on Valley Pass later this evening. Valley Pass costs just £6.50 a month and you can sign-up here.

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