Football Diary

by Patrick O'Connor

IT'S the season of goodwill but in football that doesn't always mean that there are wise men about.

Take the Aston Villa and England striker Darren Bent for example. He was unavailable to play for his team in their home game against Liverpool because of injury.

MOST young boys who dream of becoming a footballer want to be a star striker, and it is easy to see why – they grab all the headlines and quite often most of the money:  Struggling Premier League side Aston Villa splashed out £18million (the deal could eventually rise to £24million) for Sunderland forward Darren Bent last week.