Source: Northern_Echo
Bent convinced he can grace World Cup stage
ENGLAND World Cup hopeful Darren Bent is confident he can produce the goods if he is given his chance on the biggest stage of all.[LNB] The 26-year-old Sunderland striker plundered 25 goals during his first season on Wearside, 24 of them in the Barclays Premier League, after a £10m switch to the Stadium of Light ended his misery at Tottenham.[LNB] That form catapulted him back into England contention and won him a place in Fabio Capello's provisional 30-man party for South Africa.[LNB] Bent will hope to stake his claim for a seat on the plane to South Africa as the Italian uses tonight's friendly against Mexico at Wembley and the clash with Japan in Austria on Sunday to put the finishing touches to his plans.[LNB] However, he is convinced he has what it will take to do a job for his country if he is called upon.[LNB] Bent said: If I am given the opportunity to play games and train and be in that environment, I am a firm believer that I can do it on that stage.[LNB] It would just top off a fantastic season for me, to go to the World Cup and play in probably the best sporting event in the world. It would be the greatest achievement of my life.'' The debate over Bent's inclusion has raged on for months, with Wayne Rooney the only Englishman to have scored more league goals than the former Ipswich and Charlton marksman this season.[LNB] He started November's friendly clash with Brazil, but struggled to make an impression, and his hopes could yet rest on whether Capello decides to go with four or five strikers.[LNB] Bent will take nothing for granted, having missed out on a place in Sven-Goran Eriksson's squad for the 2006 finals after scoring 22 goals for Charlton.[LNB] That came as a devastating blow, but he knows if he were to suffer a repeat, he would simply have to put his disappointment behind him and start again next season.[LNB] Bent said: That's what I had to do after missing the last one, just get back to doing what I know how to do.[LNB] Yes, it was disappointing and it hurt like hell, but I am a stronger person this time around and if I was to miss out I will know how to deal with it.[LNB] I will have to get on with it again. In the previous two years, I had a lot of disappointment and a lot of criticism, but this season I have scored 25 goals.[LNB] It was different the last time because a lot of people were saying, You are definitely going to go, trust me, you are going to be on the plane', and it was a shock when I didn't go, it hit me hard.[LNB] But I have dealt with it before and if I get the phone call and he says I'm not going, yes, I will be disappointed and upset, but I will just go on holiday and watch the World Cup from wherever I am in the world and then get on with it next season.'' With Rooney a certainty, Bent will fight for a place alongside him with Emile Heskey, Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe, but admits the prospect of partnering the Manchester United striker, who just missed out to Didier Drogba in the race for the Golden Boot on the final day of the season, is one he would relish.[LNB] He said: He is a fantastic, world-class player and it would be good if I get to play with him.[LNB] But it would be good if I get to play with Emile (Heskey) too. They are all fantastic strikers and I am sure I could play with any one of them."[LNB] Bent's comments came as he launched Disney XD's Aim High initiative, which is designed to inspire young boys to set and meet their life goals through a series of mentorships with high-profile personalities, including the England football international and his cricket counterpart Stuart Broad.[LNB] Bent said: "It's really important and it's nice to be involved with things like this because when I was younger, there were no schemes like this at all." www.disneyxd.co.uk/aimhigh from June 1.[LNB]
