Sunderland's Adam Johnson warns young players about signing for Manchester City It's not that you're not good enough, it's just that the likes of Yaya Toure are going to play ahead of you no matter what you do. City signed two more promising young Englishmen in the last transfer window, Scott Sinclair from Swansea and Jack Rodwell from Everton, but Johnson fears they will suffer as he did because City prefer to sign players rather than develop those in the squad. His view will be dismissed as the complaint of a disgruntled former employee at the Etihad Stadium, but England need players such as Johnson to prosper in the Premier League, not lose confidence as he did under Mancini. "You want to be part of the Champions League, but there is being part of it and playing in it," Johnson said. There's no point just being part of it and not playing. You ask any player if they mind sitting on the bench, and if they say they don't mind, they'd be lying. They'd also be lying if they say they don't mind playing every couple of games. The novelty wears off. At first, when you haven't played Champions League games before, it's great to be involved with the atmosphere, going to different grounds, but it's about playing. There have been claims that Mancini was critical of Johnson's lifestyle, although the winger disputes that. "You have to ask him [Mancini] for the reasons why he didn't play me as much," Johnson said. I would just say that I was no different to half the team. I wasn't going out by myself. I've left because I want to play, to be appreciated more. For the last year, maybe a bit longer, I was sort of forgotten about. I want people talking about me again and knowing me for being a good player. That's one of the reasons for coming to Sunderland, being able to play with a bit of freedom, express myself and go out there and do what I did before I left for City. After speaking to Martin O'Neill, that's probably one of the prime examples of his man-management; he makes you feel like he wants you and he makes you feel 10 feet tall. If a player is feeling good, then that's when you play your best football. Johnson said he would not celebrate if he scored against his former club today out of respect for the fans and his former team-mates, even though part of him "would like to in front of certain parts." Mancini, though, has been more diplomatic. He said: "I'm sure that he will do well for Sunderland He deserved this because he's a good guy and a good player. I like Adam and he's a really good player. He decided he wanted to go and play every game and decided to leave.