DARREN Bent has been passed fit to press his World Cup claims in England’s final warm-up game against Japan.

The Sunderland striker returned to full training yesterday after recovering from the groin problem that ruled him out of Monday’s 3-1 win over Mexico.

With Fabio Capello due to axe seven players from his preliminary 30-man squad next Tuesday, Bent’s failure to appear at Wembley represented a major blow to his hopes of making the plane to South Africa.

However, after England medical staff examined his groin yesterday, he has received the green light to be involved in Sunday’s friendly in Graz.

Capello is expected to field another experimental line up in two days time, and after failing to impress in his most recent international outing against Brazil, Bent will be desperately hoping he is given sufficient time to make an impact.

Emile Heskey will also be hoping to start after failing to appear in England’s opening warm-up game, and the make up of Capello’s starting XI will provide a strong hint as to which of the five strikers in the provisional squad is likely to be disappointed next week.

Stephen Warnock is another player sweating on his place in South Africa, and the Aston Villa full-back hardly helped his cause when he limped out of yesterday’s training session with a twisted ankle.

The extent of the problem will be assessed in the next 24 hours, but Warnock’s chances of edging Leighton Baines out of the final squad now appear slimmer than ever despite the Everton left-back’s poor showing at Wembley on Monday.

Steven Gerrard was also the subject of an injury scare yesterday, but sources close to the England camp have played down speculation that he limped out of training.

The Liverpool skipper is understood to have taken time out to do some stretching exercises, and is expected to be involved against Japan, who were beaten on home soil by South Korea earlier this week.

The identity of England’s goalkeeper for Sunday’s game remains unclear, but Robert Green has claimed the ongoing uncertainty is fuelling a strong rivalry between the three hopefuls.

Capello has not yet declared his first choice for England’s World Cup opener against the United States, insisting he does not want to declare his hand too early.

David James appeared to be Capello’s preferred choice at the start of the season, when the Italian was more concrete in his ideas.

Yet injury has restricted the Portsmouth star to just one international appearance last term, as a substitute against the Ukraine in October after Green had been sent off.

Capello has also spoken in glowing terms about Joe Hart’s development and refused to rule out the possibility that the 23-year-old could head to South Africa as his number one, despite winning only his second cap against Mexico on Monday night.

Yet Green would appear to be in pole position.

He has now started eight of the last ten England games - the absent Ben Foster claimed the other two - and was again handed the jersey for the opening 45 minutes this week.

Green went on to produce two superb saves in the first half of England’s 3-1 win, attracting more praise from a clearly impressed Capello.

“It is there for you to take your chance,” said Green. “I learned a lot more because it was a tough 45 minutes.

“Mexico had a lot of possession in our half and I didn’t regard it as a friendly. It was a real international game.”

It is the strange world a goalkeeper inhabits that England’s struggle to contain Mexico in the opening period was to Green’s advantage.

While Hart did not have that much to do once Steven Gerrard had been handed a central midfield berth after the interval, Green was called upon more often to keep Mexico out.

Hart may have wished it was the other way round and James will hope what looks like a hopelessly mismatched Japan side summon up some attacking spirit in Graz on Sunday to provide him with a bit of action to catch the eye.

“In international football, chances don’t come along very often,” said Green. “We are all in the running and it shouldn’t be any other way.

There is a strong rivalry but it is something that’s healthy.

“We are determined to keep pushing each other. We are all getting on well and looking to take our chance when it comes. That is what the manager wants.

“But whoever plays, the other two are behind him. We are encouraging each other, which is the best thing for England.”