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Johnson wants leading role

Image: Johnson: Tipped for the top

Adam Johnson is hoping to be given the opportunity to add a creative spark to the England ranks.

City winger harbours England ambition

Adam Johnson is hoping to be given the opportunity to add a creative spark to the England ranks. The Manchester City winger is still smarting after being overlooked by Fabio Capello for this summer's World Cup. He is, however, determined to become an integral part of the fold heading forward, with sweeping changes expected to be implemented within the squad. Johnson believes he is among those capable of leading the Three Lions into an exciting new era, as his direct approach is ideally suited to international football. He said in The Sun: "I missed out on the World Cup, but it's gone now. "Maybe it is a fresh start for everybody and maybe it will feel more like a level playing field. "Hopefully, I'll find out against Hungary. "I was one of the players in form before the World Cup and I was devastated not to go to South Africa. "There are a lot of players who play on the wing who just go up and down and work hard defensively for the team. "Apart from (Arjen) Robben, (Lionel) Messi and (Franck) Ribery, not many actually go past people with skills any more. They are the players I like."

Priority

Johnson is also keen to carry his fine form from last season, following his switch to City from Middlesbrough, into the 2010/11 campaign, allowing him to follow his England dream. He added: "If I am playing well for City and starting games, the England thing should follow. My priority is to make sure I'm in the City team. I'd be delighted if I was in that squad for the first game of the new season (against Hungary on 11th August). "I've heard it said I might be better for not going to South Africa, but it's still a World Cup I missed and there isn't another for four years. "I've got time on my side and, hopefully, I'll be able to get into the squad for Euro 2012. "City are going places and a lot of people are talking about us. We've tried to sweep that under the carpet and just go day by day. "We don't know how far we'll go but we'll win a lot of games."