BLACKBURN manager Mark Hughes hopes David Bentley can inspire another Rolls Royce performance at Goodison Park tomorrow.

The in-form midfielder was instrumental in destroying Everton when Rovers cruised to a 4-1 victory in the third round of the FA Cup last month.

Now Hughes wants Bentley to repeat those heroics again when Rovers return to Merseyside - and show England manager Steve McClaren why he deserves a chance at full international level.

The Rovers boss was disappointed to learn that Bentley had been overlooked when McClaren named his squad for this week's friendly with Spain.

At a time when England are desperate for inspiration, Hughes believes the former Arsenal midfielder is just the type of player who could breathe new life into a squad that appears to have lost its way since McClaren's appointment last summer.

While England produced yet another insipid performance against the Spaniards at Old Trafford on Wednesday night, Bentley earned yet more rave reviews following a sparkling display for the Under 21s 24 hours earlier.

Now Hughes is leading the calls for Bentley to be promoted to the full England set-up because he believes he could do a similar job for McClaren to the one he's doing for Blackburn.

The Rovers chief said: "I thought David was very unlucky to miss out on a full England call-up because he would be a good option for the senior squad.

"He can go past people, manipulate the ball, he has craft and guile and he can open defences up. All of those qualities were lacking for England the other night.

"I was lucky to work with Gianfranco Zola and David Beckham at close hand and the way that David manipulates the ball is very similar to those two.

"He's a great crosser of the ball and I can't think of anyone better than him amongst the current crop that have been given their opportunity.

"He's always been a technically gifted player, but now he's got more strength to his game, he's got more power, and he's working physically to be able to cope with the demands of playing week in and week out in the Premiership, and that's a big difference for him.

"David might be closer when the next squad is named, but I'm sure his chance will come eventually."

Bentley's versatility has proved to be a priceless commodity during Rovers' quest for honours this term.

Whether it's out on the right, in the centre of midfield, or as a second striker, Bentley has delivered a series of eye catching displays, which has made him invaluable to Hughes.

"He can play off the front, I've played him out wide, he can play in the middle of the park, and I've played him either side of a holding player, so he can play a number of roles and I don't think he's suffered from playing different positions, I think it's added to his game," said the Rovers boss.

Bentley's craft was prominent in that 4-1 victory at Goodison a month ago, where goals from Matt Derbyshire, Paul Gallagher, Morten Gamst Pedersen and Benni McCarthy blew David Moyes' side away.

Now Hughes is looking for a repeat performance, but he expects Everton to be fired up as they seek quick revenge.

"I'm sure they're still smarting from that. On the day we played exceptionally well and maybe they'll feel they didn't do themselves justice.

"But I think that's taking away a little bit from the level that we hit. I thought we were excellent and scored some great goals.

"If we play as well as we did on that day and get our noses in front then we'll be difficult to beat again."