Aston Villa striker Darren Bent has revealed Ashley Young turned down an offer from Real Madrid.
Young is the subject of intense interest from Manchester United.
Bent told the London Evening Standard: "The way we have been playing at Villa, we know what each other is going to do. It will benefit England and we can keep that partnership going even if he leaves.
"When you have teams like Manchester United knocking, that doesn't happen all the time and we have to be smart about that. These kind of opportunities don't come around too often.
"To be fair Ash has stayed loyal to Aston Villa.
He could have gone to Real Madrid a couple of years ago but stayed for another season. If we can hold on to him, I will be over the moon."
