Gabriel Agbonlahor is confident that he could adapt to the pressures of international football.
Striker looking to follow in footsteps of team-mates
Gabriel Agbonlahor is confident that he could adapt to the pressures of international football.
The Villa striker is his club's top scorer so far this season with six goals, and has earned rave reviews after a string of fine performances.
He has also established himself within Stuart Pearce's U21 set-up, scoring his first goal at that level against Montenegro in September.
After turning down the opportunity to play for Nigeria in order to concentrate on breaking into the England fold, Agbonlahor is now hoping to join club captain Gareth Barry and fellow U21 graduates and club team-mates Ashley Young and Scott Carson in the senior squad.
With England only due to play friendlies against Switzerland and France before the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign gets under way, there is every chance that Agbonlahor may be given his opportunity by Steve McClaren's successor.
England call
"Anyone who is born in this country would want to play for England," Agbonlahor said.
"At the moment I'm concentrating on Villa but, if the call comes from England, I would love to take it.
"Doing well in the Premier League is bound to give you a chance at international level. I found that when I got into the Under 21s and, if I get a chance with the full team, I think I would be able to hack it there.
"International football is a lot different to club football but I feel I could adapt because I've played quite a few games for the Under 21s."
Learning
Agbonlahor is also keen to point out that his current form can be put down to the hard work put in by manager Martin O'Neill and his backroom staff.
"The more I play in the Premier League, the more I'm learning," he said.
"Robbo (John Robertson) and Wally (Steve Walford) have shown me how to hold the ball up and I feel I'm in a much better all-round player because of it.
"As a striker, you also need to be strong and fend off defenders. I've also spent the last few years trying to get stronger, and Jim Henry (fitness coach) has helped with that."
