Darren Bent opens up to Football League sponsor Sky Bet on how he has used his loan spell at Derby to rediscover top form.
Friday 1 May 2015 13:30, UK
Six months ago, Darren Bent's Aston Villa career was in the doldrums as his season statistics read six substitute appearances and no goals.
There were few signs of things improving under manager Paul Lambert, who had given the striker just eight starts in 2012/13 before shipping him off to Fulham last season, with his latest cameo coming as an 89th-minute appearance in a 2-1 defeat to former club Tottenham.
Bent had been Spurs' club-record signing and was yet again when he joined Villa in 2011 but, at 30 years old, the England international was struggling for the chance to prove his worth.
Coming to Derby was a no-brainer to be honest... I still feel like a young 16-year-old trying to put the ball in the net.
That's where Derby saw their opportunity - the chance to bring in a striker eager to bring quality and experience to side battling for promotion.
Fast forward to the final weekend of the Sky Bet Football League season, and Bent has fired the Rams to the brink of a place in the play-offs, netting 10 times and providing three assists during his 14 appearances since joining on loan.
The striker speaks openly on his career so far and his aspirations of firing Derby, and indeed himself, back into the Premier League.
He said: "Coming to Derby was a no-brainer to be honest. With Steve McClaren, who I played under at England, they looked like a team destined for the Premier League and hopefully they still are.
"I still feel like a young 16-year-old trying to put the ball in the net but hopefully I can help some of the younger lads with my experience and get Derby in the Premier League."
Watch Derby v Reading in the Sky Bet Championship live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 12pm on Saturday.
