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Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert says there is no problem with striker Darren Bent

Image: Paul Lambert: Adamant that there has been no bust-up with Aston Villa striker Darren Bent

Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert insists there is no rift with £18million club-record signing Darren Bent, who has been dropped for the last two games, and that the pair are on good terms.

Lambert added: "You wouldn't take Darren's selfishness away from him because he is a goalscorer and that's what he does best. "But my job is to pick a team that will win us a game. That is my job and that's what I try and do for this football club. "It will be the same for everyone. I trust the lads to perform. That's the great thing I've got but I can't keep everyone happy all the time. It's a decision I'll make."

Benteke praise

Lambert, whose side visit Fulham on Saturday, is predicting a massive future for 21-year-old Benteke, who netted for Belgium in the World Cup qualifiers with Serbia and Scotland during the past week. It was a perfect response after missing a golden chance to open the scoring in the 2-0 defeat at Tottenham a fortnight ago. "I'm pretty sure when he went away after the Tottenham game, when he had a big chance to score, he could have gone under," noted Lambert. "To bounce back with two goals in two games for his national team is excellent. That's a big thing for a young player, to get over the disappointment. "Christian is playing in a right top Belgium side and more than holding his own. "For someone who is only 21 and the way he is performing, what he will do for this club will be terrific. "I thought that when we signed him 'this kid can be a right top player'. I think he can be huge, anything he wants to be. He can be a top, top striker because he is a handful. "He will make mistakes because he doesn't know everything about the game but as time goes on, and he becomes experienced, he will be an absolute handful." Villa have collected only one win from their opening seven league games but Lambert is happy with their performances. He said: "The good thing is the lads know themselves they are playing well. "Everyone says they could have more points and it is not something I really worry about. I never look over my shoulder at what could have been. "It's now that is in my thinking. But the performances have been good and we will just keep on going. "They are playing well enough to win games, that's for sure."

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