Are You Really Watching Fabio?

He had no target man yesterday and scored two....

He deserves to be on the plane, no doubt. If Capello doesn't think he'll fit into the system with Rooney, at least have Bent on the bench for a plan B. FFS

The problem Bent has is that every goal he scores looks flooky. It's obviously not the case because you'd have to sell your soul to the devil on the condition you get arse raped for eternity when you die to get that much luck. He is genuinely a goalscorer. It doesn't look pretty but he gets the job done. I'd still have him at the lane and switch him with Defoe when he goes off the boil and vice versa. I'd have anyone on the plane instead of Heskey. I'm sorry but a striker has to score goals. It's not enough to say "there's more to his game" because other people can hold it up and flick the ball on who also have goals in their locker (Carlton Cole, Crouch for England does well). He has the goalscoring record of an average central midfielder, averaging a goal every 6.5 games for Villa. If that gets you to a World Cup then John Parkin and Steve Howard are surely still in with a shout.

Englands problem with strikers is that we tend to produce strikers who are world class in one particular aspect, but have an equal and glaringly obvious flaw in another aspect of their game. The best international strikers are good all rounders - most dont stand out because they are brilliant at one thing - its usually that they're fairly decent at everything - they're not weak, not short, not terrible headers, not slow, not poor finishers, dont have a terrible first touch and dont have poor movement. With English strikers (apart from Rooney) what you'll usually find is that in one or two of those areas they'll be very poor and in international football, where you will only get one or two chances and you cannot guarantee what type it will be - you cannot afford to have such obvious weaknesses to your game. If you look at any english striker (apart from Rooney and maybe carlton cole) you'll see I'm correct. They all have that one thing about them which is just pretty much terrible.

England need players with the ability and desire to get on the ball keep possession and then do something intelligent with it. That is not Darren Bents game I'm afraid, nor is it Defoes. At the top level pace and movement can be accounted for by top defenders using positioning and intelligence. England cant afford to take another player who is "brilliant off the ball". We're already lacking players who are good with it. In the recent friendly where defoe, lampard and walcott were replaced by crouch, milner and carrick england looked a much better side. Bent, Defoe and Agbonlahor have all failed to deliver on the few chances they've had with england because international defenders are not as suceptible to a simple ball over the top as most premier league defenders. I'd not be suprised to see Rooney, Crouch, Heskey and Cole as the strikers this summer.

Bent will run his socks off and given the right service he will score.

Tuscan3000 bit unfair on Gabby, he hasnt had amount of chances that Defoe, Bent and co. Also he is the only one to have not played with Rooney