[4] He made a goalscoring debut in a war league match against Blackburn Rovers on 22 February 1919,[5] and scored a hat-trick against Port Vale a fortnight later.

He made his league debut against Middlesbrough on 18 February 1920 scoring both goals in a 2–0 win, playing in the position previously occupied by Tommy Browell.

While Johnson was a regular goalscorer at this point in his career, he did not score as frequently as teammates Frank Roberts and Horace Barnes.

[9] In the 1925–26 season Johnson reached the 20 goal mark for the first time, despite playing in a side struggling at the bottom of the division.

The FA Cup proved a fruitful competition for the club that season, as they reached the final, scoring 31 goals in six matches.

However, Johnson's appearance at Wembley was not a happy one, his Manchester City team losing the final 1–0 to Bolton Wanderers.

The following season, Johnson was City's leading goalscorer with 25 goals as the club sought an immediate return to the top division.

[12] Johnson and his teammates overcame the disappointment of the preceding season in 1927–28, winning the Second Division to return to the top flight.

[14] He surpassed both in his next match, and by the end of the season he had scored 38 goals in 39 league appearances, a club record which has been beaten once in 2023 by Erling Haaland.

The following season Everton reached the 1933 FA Cup Final, where Johnson faced his former club Manchester City.

Everton were comfortable victors, winning 3–0, and seven years after suffering defeat in an FA Cup final Johnson gained a winners medal.

Accounts of the match suggest Johnson had a quiet game, with reports focusing on the play of Dixie Dean and Cliff Britton.

In the 1932 British Home Championship Johnson was part of the team that defeated Scotland 3–0 with goals from Tom Waring, Bobby Barclay and Sammy Crooks.

Liverpool were struggling to avoid relegation from the First Division when Johnson joined the club, having won only one match in 17 prior to his arrival.