Darren Bent has revealed that Roy Hodgson confirmed that he is in his plans for England's bid to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
The Aston Villa striker was left out of the squad for Euro 2012 following a season cut short by an injury to his ankle but Bent has claimed that talks with Hodgson have been positive.
Bent said: "Roy rang and told me he couldn't pick me for the Euros because I hadn't played any games and so he couldn't take the chance of taking me to a tournament.
"I've had three phone calls now to tell me I wouldn't be going to various tournaments but Roy's was the best and he was understanding and really good with me on the phone.
"He said to me that I would be part of the qualifiers [for the World Cup]. My aim now is to perform well for Villa next season and then hopefully I will be picked by England as well."
The former Sunderland forward also admitted that he found it hard to deal with missing out on the squad for this summer's tournament.
"Training the next day after I found out was hard. The fitness guy at Villa even told me I looked a bit demotivated. It was hard to take initially but now it's about bouncing back and moving on," he added.
Bent has scored four goals in 13 appearances for England.
Callum Mulvihill
