Fulham manager Martin Jol has insisted that on-loan striker Darren Bent could still play himself into contention for England's World Cup squad.

Bent has scored three goals since joining for the season from Aston Villa, and Jol said that he is of an equal ability to recent England players Jermain Defoe and Danny Welbeck.

"You never know," Sky Sports News quotes Jol as saying. "[Picking a player] can be a spur of the moment thing because if Bent scores five goals in the final month of league then he could be in contention again to be selected.

"Bent is one of best finishers in England, he is like Defoe. And Defoe has a big chance to go to Brazil I think and Danny Welbeck is probably similar. They are all good players."

Fulham travel to Southampton on Saturday looking to make it three wins in a row in the Premier League.