Darren Bent aims for England starting role

Darren Bent is aiming to take advantage of Wayne Rooney's three-match suspension at the European Championships by leading the line for England at the tournament.

The Aston Villa striker, who has scored four goals at international level, has described the prospect of representing England in a major competition as a "dream come true".

"All I'm doing is wondering about myself and trying to get into the squad and play as well as I can," he told the Daily Star. "Obviously everyone is gutted for [Rooney], 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."

Bent was the leading English goalscorer in the Premier League last season.