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Patient Darren Bent gets reward after Fabio Capello's pep talk

Life back at the top of his game is proving revelatory for Darren Bent. The Tottenham Hotspur striker had drifted aimlessly through his first year at White Hart Lane, his confidence drained by a manager who clearly had no faith in his ability. "Juande Ramos said about four words to me in a year," he said yet, on his first evening back among the England set-up, Fabio Capello pulled him to one side and detailed precisely what will be expected of him in Berlin tomorrow. The Italian was supposed to be distant, almost aloof. Compared to the taciturn Ramos, Bent has found it hard to squeeze a word in edgeways.Bent returns to the national set-up scarred by last season's toils under the Spaniard but toughened by life as an outcast. Ramos's four words might as well have been "thanks, but no thanks", such was the stuttering nature of the £16.5m forward's campaign, with opportunities largely limited to cameos from the bench. The summer sales of Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov, following that of Jermain Defoe in January, offered a route back, though it took Harry Redknapp's appointment to make the 24-year-old feel wanted. Under Ramos he was scoring with his backside but these days his finishing appears far more assured. A hat-trick against Dinamo Zagreb in the Uefa Cup offered a reminder of his pedigree.After 11 goals already this season, and with Wayne Rooney injured and Michael Owen ignored, there was an inevitability to Bent's recall to international colours. His last appearance was the dismal evening against Croatia a year ago, the night when Steve McClaren's reign collapsed and England faced up to the reality that Euro 2008 had passed the nation by. Bent, given the last 10 minutes to salvage a 3-2 deficit, blazed his only opening over the bar. He duly returned to the periphery at his club, where he struggled to gain enough playing time to ease his frustration. He returns to the fold at the Olympic Stadium intent on making up for lost time."I remember that miss well but it couldn't really affect my club form because I wasn't playing any games at the time," he recalled. "It was difficult. I'd been called into the England squad even though I wasn't playing that much for Tottenham. There were times when I questioned Spurs' motives for buying me. I have no idea whether Juande wanted me. There were always people saying it was [the former sporting director] Damien Comolli who had bought me but I'd always known it was going to be difficult getting into the team with Jermain, Berba and Keano ahead of me. They've all since left, which was a big disappointment for Tottenham, but it has given me more games and a licence to express myself."A lot of people were saying I was going to leave, but I wanted to stay strong and positive. If I'd thrown it in at the end of the season, it would have given people licence to hurl abuse at me. I was just determined to start the new season fit, sharp and positive because I knew my chance would come. I remember playing against Tottenham for Charlton and they had five or six England internationals in the team, so I thought the move was going to help me get into the national side. Obviously it didn't work that way last season but I've always said that, if I can stay fit and sharp, I'll take the next chance that comes my way."An opportunity presents itself tomorrow. England are without their first-choice frontline and Bent is expected to start ahead of Gabriel Agbonlahor with a chance to demonstrate his improvement. "He deserves this opportunity," said his club captain, Ledley King. "He is a goalscorer, a player who likes to play off the defenders' shoulders. If you play to his strengths, you won't catch him. He gets in behind and is a great finisher."Capello has been impressed by Bent's renaissance. The England coach spoke with Bent on Sunday once the squad had convened at their Hertfordshire base, outlining what is expected of the forward, as if maintaining the "arm round the shoulder" approach that Redknapp has used so effectively at Spurs in the last month. "I didn't ask him, he just came up to me," Bent said. "He told me why he picked me and how he wants me to play. I just listened. He told me to play my own game and not try to overcomplicate things."As a player, that is what you want. You want to know how you are doing and what direction you're heading in, rather than there being no communication whatsoever. Harry's done the same. It's simple management, really. He's instilled belief into the players. He just tells me to go out and express myself and do what I've been doing well for years. Juande tried to complicate it and change bits and bobs. I used to talk to my dad, my agent or people in football like Mark Bright who'd tell me to keep going, but it was hard. Thankfully, that's all in the past." From now on, the four words Bent will cling to are clear: "Tottenham Hotspur and England".EnglandGermanyFabio Capelloguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Redknapp hails Tottenham revival

Manager Harry Redknapp says confidence is high after Spurs thrash Dinamo Zagreb 4-0 in the Uefa Cup.

Uefa Cup: Tottenham 4-0 Dinamo Zagreb

Tottenham Hotspur's renaissance under Harry Redknapp continues. A comprehensive victory last night over the Croatian champions, in which Darren Bent scored his first hat-trick for the club and Tom Huddlestone capped an encouragingly commanding midfield performance with a spectacular goal, kept Spurs' Uefa Cup hopes alive and fanned the feelgood factor that has returned since Redknapp replaced Juande Ramos last month.Whereas Ramos's team selection suggested he, to the consternation of most of the club's supporters, assigned this tournament greater importance than the Premier League, Redknapp was at pains before last night's game to restore the natural order of things by insisting domestic survival took precedence over any European exploits. Yet he knows the two are not mutually exclusive and his eagerness to prolong the momentum generated by a successful start meant the Spurs manager deployed a strong side last night, resting Ledley King as his only concession to the impending trip to Manchester City.Spurs' new confidence was evident in a vibrant start and, perhaps even more encouragingly for the locals, there was also abundant proof that they are finding the fluidity they have lacked. David Bentley and Aaron Lennon raced frequently down the wings, aided by enterprising full-backs, while Luka Modric continued to revel in the free role Redknapp has given him just behind the striker. Huddlestone and Didier Zokora patrolled the middle with power and impressive poise.Within minutes of the opening it all seemed too much for the disappointing visitors. After only four minutes Alan Hutton raced down the right then slashed the ball across goal with such venom that the retreating Mario Mandzukic diverted it in a panic against his own post.Four minutes later Modric caught the side that sold him last summer by surprise, his quick free-kick teeing up Huddlestone for a 20-yard shot which curled fractionally wide. As Modric himself drew a fingertip save moments later, suspicions grew that the Croatians who would prove most troublesome to Tottenham on the night might be the 200 or so Zagreb fans who periodically sent dense plumes of smoke over the pitch by igniting flares. When stewards intervened midway through the first half violence briefly broke out before the arrival of a clutch of policemen.Those fans were soon subdued even further when Spurs scored after half an hour. Bentley flicked the ball cleverly forward to Modric, who flashed it into the centre where Huddlestone miscued, only for the unmarked Bent to slam the ball in off the underside of the crossbar from 15 yards.Huddlestone made a more elegant contribution to Bent's second, which arrived only three minutes later. Some 35 yards from goal the giant midfielder surveyed his options before calmly stroking the ball through to Bent, who had again escaped the defenders and from just inside the area slotted the ball under Ivan Kelava.The visitors lacked Tottenham's pace and dynamism but their sure technique meant a comeback could not entirely be discounted. A Bosko Balaban free-kick which sailed over the bar was the closest they came to scoring in the first period but at the start of the second Jonathan Woodgate had to react bravely to block a dangerous drive from Mandzukic.Spurs' retaliation was swift. On 59 minutes, moments after Bent had turned down a hat-trick invitation by nodding wide from close range, Bentley floated a corner towards the edge of the box and Huddlestone smashed a low drive past the keeper. As the Croatians' spirit dipped, Spurs began to strut, Huddlestone and Zokora now controlling midfield with a swagger seldom seen under Ramos.Fittingly, Huddlestone was the architect of the fourth, topping off a seemingly effortless move by rolling the ball through to Bent. This time, with only the keeper to beat, the striker accepted his hat-trick and hit his ninth goal of a season which is suddenly not looking so desperate for Spurs.Further promise of a better future came in the 79th minute when John Bostock became, at 16 years and 295 days, the youngest player ever to feature in Tottenham's first team. He almost marked the occasion with a goal, but perhaps a misleading air of perfection would have been conferred if his spectacular long-range effort in the 85th minute had found the net rather than whistled past the post.Uefa CupTottenham HotspurDinamo Zagrebguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Bent stars as Spurs hammer Zagreb

Tottenham get their Uefa Cup campaign back on track as Darren Bent grabs a hat-trick in a 4-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb.

Zagreb car bomb kills journalist

A car bomb in the Croatian capital Zagreb kills journalist and newspaper owner Ivo Pukanic, and a colleague.

Fifa to probe Heskey racial abuse

Fifa will investigate alleged racial abuse directed at Emile Heskey by Croatia fans during England's win in Zagreb last week.

A triumph for heresy

Comment is free: Mark Lawson: In Zagreb the England footballers put the boot into one of sport's most cherished traditions

Walcott hat-trick sees Croatia off

Sport: England destroy Croatia in Zagreb, Scotland beat Iceland, Northern Ireland draw but Wales lose

Rampant England humble Croatians

Theo Walcott scores a hat-trick as England produce a stunning display to thrash Croatia in a World Cup qualifying match in Zagreb.