Grow up Bent

"I was fighting an uphill battle before I went there. I knew they had Defoe, Berbatov and Keane", said a cheerful Darren Bent yesterday. Hmm, that's interesting mate. Then why did you sign, knowing that you faced an 'uphill battle'?

"Every club needs four good strikers they always say. It wasn't just my decision to go there. Other people were influencing it as well."

So it wasn't really your decision to sign a £35,000 per week contract?

The lad scored a bundle of goals for us, but let's not forget that he also missed a fair lot as well.

Thing is, you just know, for a certainty, that he'll score today. Paddy Power have given odds of 15/2 on Bent scoring first, which, if you're a betting so-and-so, isn't too bad.

Can still see us beating them 3-2 mind.


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Would you sign Michael Turner?

I personally think all this talk about us being interested in Michael Turner has only circulated because Hull are also playing in the Far East and more importantly, because we need to sign a defender.

Michael Turner is a great centre half. I've seen him play a few times and the lad means business. Whether we can get Hull to part with their star player is another matter as they're having problems of their own in signing anyone decent.

If it was a tussle between us signing Turner or Bassong, I'd definitely go for Turner. He's stronger on the ball and scores a few to.

On another note, it seems that Darren Bent has made his way back down south after Sunderland agreed and then disagreed on the amount we want for him. Depending on what you read, Levy was holding out for around £15 million. That's a decent price for a striker that will most definitely get them 20+ goals a season.

Robbie Keane and Villa have also been mentioned in the same sentence. As I've said before, I cannot see Keano starting many games in the Premier League now that Crouchie has signed. Would I be sad to see the lad go? Probably not.

Oh, and apparently, we're still interested in Huntelaar. Real Madrid need to submit their 25 man squad for the season soon and the talk in Madrid is that he won't be a part of the new-look squad. That will signal a race to sign him at a knock down fee.

If we do end up getting him and he scores a few, expect Defoe to be unhappy. Everyone says that you need four strikers, but no one tells you how you can keep them all happy!

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The Irony of Redknapp

So then, it looks as though Crouch will sign sometime next week and it also looks likely that Darren Bent will be wearing the red and white of Sunderland.

In my opinion (and as my dad says; opinions are like bum holes....everybody's got one), signing Crouch for £10 million could be a good bit of business.

If indeed Levy holds out for £15 million and Bent goes the other way, we'll be in profit.

Portsmouth manager, Paul Hart, spoke about the spending of Harry Redknapp whilst he was Pompey boss and how that extravagant spree has now deterred Hart from going out and spending the same type of cash as his predecessor.

Harry, who bought Crouch from Liverpool in 2007 for £9 million, stated this week that the £12 million wanted for Crouch was just too much.

How ironic then that Portsmouth agreed to accept a £10 million offer for Crouch from the very manager that put them in this predicament. For if Harry hadn't spent all their money, Portsmouth would have been in a position to decline our overtures.

You can't fault Harry on his transfer dealings. Or maybe you can? Some posters on here said they are fed up of how disrespectful Harry can be and that he shouldn't talk about the players he's interested in public.

I see their point, but at the end of the day, if this tactic works......

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Huntelaar is still plan A

"There's a lot of talk about who I may or may not be after but Huntelaar is the one I like", said Harry.

This is interesting. All the talk has been about Crouch joining us, but it looks likely that Klass-jan Huntelaar may be our first significant signing of the summer.

Harry Redknapp summed the player up by saying "The lad is a very good goalscorer". He sure is, or was in Holland.

Talk around the place at the moment is that Arsenal are interested in him to, so if we are to sign the lad, Harry's got to move fast.

If we do get him, we'll have 3 out-and-out strikers in Jermain Defoe, Darren Bent & Klass-jan Huntelaar.

Don't be surprised if we sign Huntelaar and Crouch. If that happens, I can't see Pavlyuchenko or Bent sticking around.

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Shouldn't Bent be worth more than Crouch?

The Daily Mail has reported that Bent could move to Sunderland for £12 million.

Didn't Levy say that Bent isn't going anywhere unless the £16 million (or £18 million; depending on which red-top you read) valuation is reached?

You decide

Darren Bent Careers Goals
Total Games 294 : Total Goals 117 : Bent scores a goal every 2.5 games on average

Peter Crouch Careers Goals
Total Games 343 : Total Goals 115 : Crouch scores a goal every 3 games on average

I couldn't find the assists totals, but I am pretty confident that Crouch has a better assist average.

I feel that Bent, if played regularly, can hit 20 goals a season. There aren't a lot of strikers in the Premier League that can do that.

Levy; hold out for the £16 million!

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Pav is part of the plan

Our Russian strikers' agent says that he is confident his client will be part of the Redknapp plan this season.

Can anyone shed some light on what this plan entails? I only ask as it looks like we really are linked with every player. Today I read that Beckham will join us or City. Give me a break.

Does this plan state how Crouch (possibly), Defoe, Bent, Keane & Pavlyuchenko will all be vying for a place up front? What about a left winger? We haven't had one of those since Ginola.

A lot of you have said that there will be some definite action in the next two weeks. I'll believe that when I see it!

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It looks like Crouch will be joining us

The scenario being played out at the moment with both Harry Redknapp and Jermain Defoe sending love sonnets to Peter Crouch can only mean a deal is on the cards.

I thought we would end up with Crouch, I just didn't think it would be this soon.

Harry himself said that he was after 2 or 3 players that could add class to our current squad. If that statement meant anything at all, can someone please explain to me then, how, and in what way Peter Crouch can accomplish this?

We're apparently waiting on Huntelaar to decide if he wants to join us not. Let's hope Crouch is plan B and the option of signing Huntelaar is plan A.

Hell, I'd even want Negredo, a player that's never played in the Prem, above Crouch.

With all this business about us being linked with strikers, I think it's pretty obvious either Bent, Pavlyuchenko, or both will be on their way.

If we hear another word from Harry on Crouch, expect it to be a done deal.

COYS!!!

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Which 3 players will sign?

So then, the end of season rumpus is once again on us and it looks as though our manager has started the merry go round all on his own.

He's said that he'll need approximately £30 million to spend on the 3 players he's identified to really push on our squad. But he'll also have to sell around 4 players.

Let's begin with the players that will be leaving. We believe that Darren Bent & Tom Huddlestone will be sold to Villa in a deal that will bring Gareth Barry to Spurs. But of course, this relies on whether Barry want to move to us in the first instance.

David Bentley will also be moved on, but I can't see which side in the Premier League will take him on?

We can see Alan Hutton being the forth player moved on by Harry. Rangers are making all the right noises in an attempt to get him back and now that they've won the league, the transfer fee shouldn't be to much of a problem, although forget us making a profit on him, or even recouping what we shelled out for him.

When it comes to the players Harry wants in, expect him to bust a gut in getting Glen Johnson & Peter Crouch.

If Hutton & Bent do depart, the above two are exactly what Harry will want.

If the Barry deal doesn't come off, and to be honest, we can't see it happening, then expect us to go for Muntari.

Yes we've all read that he's not interested in leaving Inter, but we also remember reading in July 2008 that a certain Roman Pavlyuchenko wanted to sign for a Champions League side only and wasn't at all interested in Tottenham Hotspur.

To sum up, we believe that Glen Johnson, Peter Crouch & Sulley Muntari or Gareth Barry are the players Harry Redknapp has in mind.

With Modric playing well on the left, and with Gareth Bale as another left wing option, we can't see Harry trying to fill in that spot.

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Harry's Signings

Regardless of what some media sources are stating, I feel that Harry won't go out "guns blazing" in an attempt to sign a whole host of new talent.

I have said for a while now that I believe a deal was struck in January with Middlesbrough to bring Downing to Spurs in the close season.

I also believe the news that we are discussing a deal with Inter to sign Sulley Muntari.

Harry Redknapp may move Darren Bent & Jermaine Jenas on, but I have a feeling that David Bentley and Tom Huddlestone will remain at the club.

If Bent does leave, I can see Harry attempting to sign a replacement, but don't expect Blackburn's Santa Cruz to be that player, or anyone of that ilk.
To be honest with you, I personally believe that Downing & Muntari will be the only two players that we will sign this summer.

Maybe that's a good thing. After so many seasons in which we seem to buy a new side, let's hope for a summer of settlement and continuity.

Written by Jamie Stevenson of Palmers Green, London

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Who would you rather Harry let go?

With the commotion relating to the apparent Bent/Bentley/Pavlyuchenko departure(s), who would you actually like to see leave the club?

We felt a bit let down when we read the reports surrounding our Russian striker a few weeks ago. He surely deserves at least another season, after all, he's been playing continuously since March 2008.

As far as we're concerned, Bent and Bentley can pack their bags. Although we feel that Darren Bent is a useful Premier League striker, he just hasn't managed to perform at Spurs.

As for Bentley, the less said the better.

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You know where the door is sunshine

I'm sure that you've all read or heard about the threats Darren Bent has made this week. If not, here's a snap of the comments he made;

"I've spoken to the manager a couple of times about my position but I can only hear the same thing so many times," Bent told The Sun. "I'm not one of those players who will just sit back and let his career pass him by.

"But I'm only 25 and there is so much more to come from me as a player. I'm not the finished article and I will get better.

"I'd like to think that improvement will be with Tottenham. But if nothing is happening for me by the end of the season then I will look to go elsewhere."

Darren....don't let the door hit you on your way out!

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