Johnson Pays Tribute To City

Adam Johnson has paid tribute to the blues after the winger made his England debut on Monday night.

Johnson came on with six minutes remaining and almost made a chance for Jermaine Defoe within two minutes of his introduction at Wembley and will be firmly in the mind of manager Fabio Capello while the Italian decides who to take with him on the plane to South Africa.

“It was brilliant,” said Johnson in reference to his first appearance in an England shirt. “To make my debut in front of 88,00o fans at Wembley is something I’ll never forget.”

The winger went on to praise City’s role in helping the youngster gain his first international cap, saying “Middlesbrough were great for me but coming to City has been fantastic. If I’d stayed where I was, I doubt I would have had this opportunity. The last six months have been fantastic”

Johnson will be hoping not to be among the seven unlucky stars who will be left out when Capello names his 23 man squad for the finals on 1st June, although that could be reduced to six if Gareth Barry fails to recover in time from injury.