Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert has insisted that his decision to allow Darren Bent to leave the club on loan was "nothing personal".

Bent, who has struggled to hold down a first-team place under the Scot, spent last season on loan at Fulham before being loaned out to Brighton & Hove Albion and Derby County this term.

Earlier this month Bent was quoted as saying that Lambert's decision to leave him out of his plans was "personal" but the Villa boss has hit back at the claim.

"I think Darren has got to be honest with himself. If you ask anyone here, or any of his team-mates, they would tell you, it's nothing personal," BT Sport quotes Lambert as saying.

"I never stood in his way to go to any other club. The only clubs that came in for him were Championship clubs - not one Premier League club. That says a lot, so it was never personal. He went to Brighton for a month and [they] never wanted to renew it. He's gone to Derby and never started a game.

"At Fulham, he never played a lot of games towards the tail end. Was it personal with me when he was at Fulham? It is what it is, but it was never personal."

Bent's contract at Villa is due to expire this summer.