Paul Lambert has praised hat-trick hero Christian Benteke following Aston Villa’s 6-1 win over Sunderland.
Benteke inspired Villa to a comprehensive victory, netting three times in the second half as Lambert’s men gained three points which could prove vital in their fight against relegation.
Ron Vlaar opened the scoring for the hosts before Danny Rose levelled matters for Sunderland. Andreas Weimann restored Villa’s advantage late in the first half before Benteke took over to put the game beyond doubt.
Gabriel Agbonlahor rounded off the win for Lambert’s side but the Scot reserved special praise for his Belgian striker.
“You can’t speak highly enough of him,” Lambert said.
“He keeps his feet on the ground and is hungry to have success as a footballer. I thought we needed a striker like that. He is a big lad and everyone can see his technique is fabulous.
“He played a lot games for Genk. He is Belgium’s main target player and they are going to qualify for the World Cup.
“People forget he is 22. He has a big career in front of him as long as he keeps working hard.”
However, despite Benteke’s performance, Lambert believed Villa’s best player was defender Matthew Lowton, who produced an excellent display from right-back.
Lambert added: “Matt Lowton was the best player on the pitch by an absolute mile.”
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