Sunderland Football Club News

• Nickname:Black Cats
• Founded:1879
• Manager:Martin O'Neill

• Ground:Stadium of light
• Capacity:48,353

Bruce hails England-class Bent

22 Nov 2009 - 11:10:44

Click To Enlarge

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce claims Darren Bent should be an automatic pick for the England World Cup squad following his winning goal in Saturday's 1-0 success over Arsenal.

Bent's 71st minute strike was his ninth goal since joining the Black Cats from Tottenham during the summer and Bruce believes there is currently no better striker operating in the Premier League.

Bent failed to shine when handed a start by England coach Fabio Capello during last weekend's 1-0 friendly defeat to Brazil.

"It's not just his goalscoring, his appetite and his work-rate are absolutely unbelievable," hailed Bruce.

"He played on his own today and ran a million miles for the team.

"For me, he would have to be in (the England World Cup squad) because he scores a goal and has scored against all the big clubs.

"I don't think he is going to be judged on a 55-minute friendly in Qatar. I don't think Mr Capello will take any notice of that.

"That shows what type of person he is. His overall work-rate and attitude for it were terrific after what has been a difficult couple of weeks for him.

"But he has bounced back the way he should."