Aston Villa striker Darren Bent wants to be an England starter.

Bent, who was top English goalscorer in the Premier League last campaign with 17 goals, has battled to establish himself with England.

The 27-year-old told the Daily Star: "All I'm doing is wondering about myself and trying to get into the squad and play as well as I can. Obviously everyone is gutted for him, especially as it's an international tournament and they don't come around often.

"It will be a big blow for the team as he is a world-class player. But this is the time for everyone to rally round and show we can win if he is there or not.

"To get picked would be a dream come true for me and mean a lot of years of hard work has paid off.

"You always dream about going to a major competition, scoring a goal and England doing really well. If that happens this time round I'll be over the moon."