Where has our Bentley gone?

With the season entering November, David Bentley has had just one Carling Cup appearance in which to persuade Harry Redknapp he's worth a place in the Spurs first team. Bentley can't afford to have another season playing reserve team football and if things don't improve on the field, maybe our midfielder will be on his way out of White Hart Lane in January.

We know that Bentley's got talent, and we all know that the the lad has some temperament issues that have put him in the papers for all the wrong reasons in the past. Last season, Bentley was accused by Harry for showing a lazy attitude in training, contributing to his lack of first team action.

Bentley missed out to Aaron Lennon for the role on the right side of midfield for much of last term and this season looks set to be a similar story, and the Betfair rumour mill suggests he could be moving on soon.

On his day Bentley can be a match winner and when given a run in the first team he has the ability to change a match. He showed that during his three years at Ewood Park, where Mark Hughes brought out the best in the precocious talent.

If Harry does decide to sell Bentley in January then there is sure to be a host of clubs interested in the player. Transfer rumours suggest Fulham have been monitoring the situation since last season and may decide to make an offer in the New Year.

Some see it a shame for us Spurs fans to lose Bentley after never really seeing the best of him? I don't view it like that. If a player isn't willing to give his all, he knows where the door is. There is enough talent in our squad to cover his departure. Aaron Lennon has started to produce the form he showed in the early parts of last season and behind him are the likes of Niko Kranjčar (who needs a game or three) and Giovani dos Santos, who could and has played on the right.

Spurs must keep in mind Bentley's knack of coming back to haunt his old clubs. Arsenal fans can vouch for that after seeing the midfielder score a 45-yard half-volley in the 4-4 draw two years ago. If he does move, Bentley would love nothing more than to prove Redknapp wrong. David would be forgetting that you can't technically prove your former manager wrong by performing well for another club.

---

Subscribe to THBN

Read our latest Evening Standard Blog

Have you got an iPod or mp3 player? If you love listening to audiobooks, click here....

Big Chiv: My Goals in Life - Get it now!

Read More

Harry: "We have agreed terms with Niko"

It looks like it's official, well, sort of. I am a follower of Harry Redknapp on Twitter, as are another 270+. Now, I can't be sure that it's really Harry, but some of the things he has said in his tweets sort of confirm that it is him.

In a tweet sent this morning, Harry said the following;

"I'd like to let you know that we have agreed terms with Niko. He'll have his medical today at around 9."

There was no other word from him in relation to this, but it looks as though we have got our man. Plus there's all the other quotes that we've all read on Sky Sports.

I'm pretty pleased with the signing of Niko Kranjčar. He's actually not a bad player and will offer our squad more depth.

Any news on Bentley? It looks as though he'll be off to Manchester City and we'll also get our money back. That has to be the deal of the window in regards ripping them off, or have Everton won that medal with the money they got for Lescott?

Read More

The Brown's hit the fan

I watched the Celtic vs. Arsenal game last night because I wanted to see what was so special about the Celtic player we are apparently so interested in.

So I watched and I watched. I was sure that his name was on the team sheet, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, there he is!", I found myself saying out loud in the 19th minute. You see, it took that long to realise that Scott Brown was actually on the pitch. He appeared every now and then, passing sideways and backwards. If Harry was at the match, surely someone would have told Brown to perform on a higher par?

A few Celtic fans have been on here recently and they likened him to Jermaine Jenas for his extraordinary skill of disappearing during matches. I was under the impression that he was a Sgt. Wilson type player, yet I've been informed that he's a box to box player. The Celtic fans also couldn't believe that we would be prepared to pay the reported £8-10 million for him. I can see why.

I know that we shouldn't judge players on one appearance, but come on, he was useless. If there's anyone out there that believes he would be a good signing, please come on here and explain why, because so far, even his supporters have said that he's not good enough, and going on yesterday's charade, I can see why.

Harry, we really could do without another hot and cold player.

Other news that that won't go away is that Aston Villa are interested in signing David Bentley and Jermaine Jenas. Villa need to replace Barry, but I can't see why they would be interested in Bentley?

Read More

Ashley would do nicely!

Ashley Young has been linked to us via The Sun. Normally, I take stories like this with a pinch of salt, but there could be some truth in the line that Harry Redknapp is interested in Ashley Young, but more importantly, the fact that Harry believes a deal for the winger is possible.

Harry has a lot of friends at The Sun and is one of the best in the business at tapping-up players, either first-hand, or via his media sources.

If there is any truth in the story that Harry's offered Bentley plus £8 million in return for Young, then signing a player of this magnitude would be a magnificent coup for us as it would show that we can still attract the top players, but would also relieve us of Bentley and his contract.

To be honest with you, I can't see us signing Ashley Young, but if the near impossible did happen, we would have a superb player on our books.

Harry is in the market for "one or two" already established players. Young fits the bill nicely.

Read More

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.

Read More

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

Want to submit your own article? Send it for review to THBN.Articles@Gmail.com

Read More

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.

Read More