Glen Johnson has revealed why he holds added motivation to ensure he is part of the 23-man England squad that travels to the World Cup finals later this summer.

The Liverpool full-back has been named in coach Fabio Capello's provisional party of 30 players and will hope to make the final cut for the trip to South Africa in June.

However, four years ago, Johnson watched the Three Lions' World Cup campaign while on holiday in Dubai after being omitted from Sven Goran Eriksson's squad.

Rather than be downcast, the 25-year-old set about establishing himself as one of the finest attacking full-backs in the Barclays Premier League - and now he is determined to grab the opportunity to take part in his first major international finals with both hands.

"Until the final 23-man squad is confirmed I won't take anything for granted but it would be fantastic to be involved," said Johnson.

"I'm pleased with the way I've been playing and I've just got to keep trying to do the job to the best of my ability.

"It was a childhood dream of mine to play in a World Cup for England. I remember watching Italia 90 as a kid and the World Cup was always massive.

"I didn't get picked for the last one and I remember watching the games while I was on holiday in Dubai.

"But I never lost heart. I've always been confident in my own ability. When I was out of the England squad I just focused on getting my head down and doing the best I could for my club.

"If England came around again I vowed to try to grab that opportunity."

Steve McClaren's ill-fated reign in charge of England put Johnson's international career on hold, but the full-back has been a regular in the Three Lions' set-up since Capello took control in January 2008.

"It's always nice when a manager shows he believes in you - it gives you that extra bit of confidence," he said.

"There are times when I have a licence to get forward, and help the team out in an attacking sense, but a defender's primary objective is to defend.

"Fabio is a great manager and a nice man. He's fantastic with the lads. He let's everyone know when it's time to knuckle down and get the job done and I think the boys have responded to that. His training regime is spot on and his tactics are second to none.

"Fabio tells us regularly that on our day we can beat anyone. He gets the best out of the boys and has definitely instilled a lot of confidence in the squad. I've been lucky enough to work with some great managers like Jose Mourinho, Harry Redknapp, Rafa Benitez and Fabio.

"They are all very different and have their own ideas but I've learned from them all."

After a strong qualifying campaign under the guidance of the Italian tactician, many feel England are best equipped to repeat the World Cup final glory of 1966 for many years.

Johnson, however, is refusing to get carried away with the nation's optimism.

"In qualifying it was a case of building the bricks from game to game," he said. "We picked up a nice run of wins, the lads have been playing well and we want to carry that on.

"We've got a chance and the lads will be trying their hearts out to do well in the competition.

"There will be pressure but if all the nation get behind us it will give the lads more confidence. There are so many difficult teams but the biggest threat for me is Spain. They have a fantastic team. They won the European Championships and have been playing really well together for a few years."

He added: "The squad has got real depth now but every team notices when their best players aren't playing.

"To give us a chance we need our best players out there playing to the best of their ability.

"Stevie (Gerrard) is without doubt one of the best midfielders around and Wayne (Rooney) can get you a goal out of nothing."

England have fallen victim to the lottery of the penalty shoot-out in their last two tournaments - but Johnson insists he wouldn't hesitate to step-up to the spot if required.

"I don't let anything get to me," he said. "I just go out there with a cool head and try to do the job. If the opportunity came up to take a penalty I certainly wouldn't shy away from it."