AT A time when the England national team remains short of natural left-wingers, the Football Association's Under-21 selection policy has come under fire after omitting one of the North-East's brightest talents from this summer's European Championships.

Middlesbrough's Adam Johnson is recognised as having the potential to become one of this country's most valuable wide-men but, despite a dearth of alternatives, he has still been ignored by Under-21s boss Stuart Pearce.

Within Pearce's provisional 30-man squad for next month's tournament in Holland, only Kieran Richardson, who turns 23 in October, is familiar with playing wide left.

James Milner, David Bentley and Wayne Routledge have all been asked to play there in the past, although all three are predominantly right-footed.

Johnson, on the other hand, is just 19 and although short of regular Premiership football, he has impressed in the majority of his 11 league starts for Middlesbrough and has made a further 14 substitute appearances in the top-flight.

At senior level the Easington-born winger's club-mate, Stewart Downing, has been the only naturally left-footed player to be regularly touted as a suitable candidate to hold down a place in Steve McClaren's squad.

And that - knowing how Kieron Dyer, Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole and Aaron Lennon have all been played there out of position- is why the Johnson camp feel the youngster should be in the squad.

"If there is a better under-21 left-sided player in England then I have certainly not seen him and neither has any of my scouting network," said Johnson's agent, Ian Elliott.

"It is most frustrating when you continually see players being played out of position on the left and, apart from Stewart, how does the FA expect to be able to bring youngsters through if they are not given a chance?

"Adam enjoyed a good run of form towards the end of the season with Middlesbrough. But, with the Premiership campaign over and done with, it would have been fantastic for him and his development to have been given a chance in Holland."

Pearce's 30-man squad will be whittled down to 23 players next Wednesday, ahead of their final warm-up game against Slovakia on June 5. The Championships begin on June 10 and England's opening fixture is against the Czech Republic a day later.

Boro team-mates Andrew Taylor and Lee Cattermole missed out on the chance to go to Holland because of injury.

Johnson would have loved to have been in Pearce's plans and it is believed both Scotland and Wales have explored the possibility of the winger's eligibility to switch allegiances.

"We don't really want to talk about him switching nations," Elliott admitted. "Adam has represented England at youth level at a number of ages and I really find it astonishing that he has not been given a chance this summer."

Gareth Southgate has high hopes for the talented Johnson and the Middlesbrough manager may have to apply for special dispensation once again to carry on in his role next season.

Last November the Premier League had allowed Southgate to carry on in his position, without holding the required UEFA Pro Licence, provided he had completed his A licence and started his Pro Licence course before the 2007-08 season.

However, due to a lack of staff at the Football Association, Southgate is due now to start his A licence, which will take at least a year to complete, at a two-week residential course.

Only then will he embark on his quest to attain the Pro Licence, which will take at least another year and take him up until 2009, only a year before all Premiership managers will be required to hold the qualification.

There is no fast-track system and Southgate, who will be doing the courses with right-hand man Colin Cooper, admitted: "The FA have tried to help so that I can do some of it internally.

"I want to be on the Pro Licence earlier, so that I don't have to do two weeks this summer then the rest the next one.

"We have moved as quickly as the FA could do it for us.''