By Daniel White
Former England international Darren Bent has joined Brighton & Hove Albion on an initial one-month loan deal from Premier League side Aston Villa until the end of December.
Bent, 30, joined the VIllans in 2011 for £18m but has struggled to make an impact since Paul Lambert’s arrival at Villa Park, making just eight appearances this season, with seven as a substitute.
“I got a phone call on Tuesday morning to say there was a possibility I could come to Brighton and play some games and I jumped at the chance,” Bent told Brighton’s official website.
“I love playing football and I’m happy to be here. Given the opportunities and playing time I’ve always managed to score goals and hopefully it can continue.”
Brighton manager, Sami Hyypia, will be hoping that the former Sunderland striker can find his clinical touch in front of goal once again as the Seagulls look to end a poor run of results which has seen them win only once in 14 league games, slipping to 20th in the Championship.
“We are delighted to welcome Darren to the club and I hope he will score plenty of goals for us during his time with us,” Hyypia told the club’s website. “His record speaks for itself. He is a top-class striker with more than 100 Premier League goals with Charlton, Spurs, Sunderland and Aston Villa.
“Three years ago he was a regular in the England squad under Fabio Capello; there is no doubting his ability to score goals.”
His arrival at the club has triggered the departure of Albion strikers Craig Mackail-Smith, who has joined Peterborough on loan for the rest of 2014, and Chris O’Grady, who has signed for Sheffield United on an initial one-month loan.