Bent boost for Villa

Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish has confirmed star striker Darren Bent will play in his side’s opening Premier League clash with Fulham.

Bent was made unavailable for Wednesday’s England-Netherlands international friendly, which was postponed due to rioting in London, after he sustained a shoulder injury.

But the 27-year-old has overcome the problem and will be included for what will be McLeish’s first official match in charge of Villa.

“Bent is fine with his shoulder. At this moment there are no injuries to shout about. We have almost everyone available,” McLeish said.

McLeish added that he expects defender James Collins to feature in Saturday’s match at Craven Cottage, despite the Welsh centre-back suffering from a back complaint.

“Collins was struggling with his back but the doctor injected him and took some blood out of a lump at the base of his back,” the Scottish manager said.

“He was in a lot of discomfort and it was right he should pull out of the midweek game for his country.”

“But we believe he will be ready for the weekend.”

Bent scored nine goals for the Midlands club after transferring there from Sunderland in January, while Collins was a constant in the Villa defence last season, making 32 league appearances.