Liberia midfielder Dulee Johnson is relishing the latest challenge in his career in Sweden and hopes that it will lead to a move to bigger things.

After five years with Swedish premiership side BK Hacken the 21-year-old made his debut for newly-promoted AIK Solna over the weekend.

"I was at Hacken for a long time, so moving to another club is a moment of joy for me," the youngster told BBC sports.

"I'm looking forward to a great season with AIK because it is a great club," he said.

"My hope is that I will justify the confidence that the club has placed in me.

"This is an opportunity for me to prove myself in another environment and is a giant step to my main goal of playing in one of the big footballing countries."

Johnson has come a long way in Swedish club football since he was spotted in 1999 as a 15-year-old playing for Liberia in the Gothia Youth Cup in Sweden.

He helped his team win the title in its age group and was also named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

His outstanding performance earned him a place at fourth division side Floda where his goals lifted the club to the third division.

Then just a year later he signed for Hacken and at 16 he became one of the youngest ever players in the Swedish premiership.

Now AIK, who are hoping to rediscover the form that made the club Swedish champions in 1998, believe their new signing can help them achieve that dream.

"Dulee is a very creative player who all the clubs in the premiership would like to have. We are happy to have him in our team," the club's chairman Stefan Soderberg noted on its website.

The player, whose father is a former national coach for Liberia, also hopes that his experience with AIK will translate into match-winning performances for the Liberian national team.

He also stressed the importance of football as a unifying force in a country coming out of a bloody civil war.

"I hope our new president and government will look at the game as something which can unite our people and make them happy," he added.