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Paul Parker on Darren Bent

from the Bexley Times:

DARREN Bent may have rejected a lucrative move to West Ham last week but he needs to think long and hard about his next destination.

The England international snubbed the Hammers hoping that a bigger club may come in for him and he may well be right with Liverpool and Tottenham still reportedly in the hunt.

He has turned his back on major money, a reported £75,000 a week - which he's unlikely to be offered anywhere elsewhere - so his motives must be of a football, rather than financial, nature.

However, Bent needs to seriously weigh up his options as neither Liverpool or Spurs can offer him what he, or any ambitious striker, requires - regular first-team football.

Rafa Benitez chops and changes his Liverpool line-up for practically every single competitive fixture. He seldom ever names an unchanged side and often employs only one striker up front. His selection policy also appears more pre-occupied with match sharpness and stamina than form, which can infuriate any player who wants to be playing week-in, week-out.

Spurs boss Martin Jol regularly deployed Dimitar Berbatov and Robbie Keane as his frontline partnership last term and Bent must therefore query if he's going to get much of a chance at White Hart Lane.

Former Addick Jermain Defoe knows all about warming the bench while Berbatov and Keane bask in the limelight; does Bent want to follow in his international team-mate's footsteps?

If the Addicks topscorer can find himself an aspiring club who give him regular football and the chance of winning silverware, both home and abroad, his decision to rebuff West Ham will have been vindicated. If not though, he may well come to regret not jumping while he had the chance.

I'm fairly certain Bent will leave The Valley this summer as his valuation will plummet the moment he kicks a ball in the Championship, but the move must be right for his fledging career.

http://www.bexleytimes.co.uk/content/bexley/times/sport/story.aspx?brand=BXYOnline&category=sportfootball&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=sportbxy&itemid=WeED20%20Jun%202007%2016%3A28%3A57%3A353

Comments

  • Did not do Johnson much harm to stay in the championship he was a one season wonder taking lots of penalty kicks yet he stayed with Palarse for a year went to the world cup and was sold for 8 million. Which would have been his value the previous season. If Bent has 15/20 goals by Christmas what would his value be in Jan and or next summer given his previous performance in the prem. the last sentance of this is rubbish/written by spammer.
  • Fledging career!!! Hold firm board on your valuation.
  • If Dazza stays and starts the season come January time there'll either be a vacancy at one of the top four clubs when a star gets injured for the season, or when they realise they need more power up front to chase a trophy in Europe or the the Premiership title, with the stupid money on offer there'll be a team that will pay over the odds for him.
  • Unless there is stuff going on that we don't know yet, then Darren knows that he holds all the trump cards.

    He's much vaunted and secure at Charlton with 3 years contract left @ £25k pw + and the hottest property in the division.

    He knows West Ham wanted him enough to guarantee him 1st team football and £70k pw - and he wasn't motivated to go.

    Spurs sounds attractive to him because of the way they play, but he knows the rules: cough up the asking price before the club let him talk. But he needs to play.

    Liverpool, Arsenal......a season bench warming. That won't allow him to score too many goals.

    As far as England is concerned, he knows he'll only be picked by Steve Mac Clown if the manager is desperately knee deep in stinking brown stuff. And at 23, he can bide his time.

    So he can probably afford a season in the Championship - only one, mind you - without damaging his prospects.
    If all else fails, and things are not working out at The Valley - then he's gone in the January window.
  • Keep him for one more season.
    Watch him break the club's all time single season scoring record (32).
    Win promotion back to the money league.
    We either keep him, or get excellent value in a transfer.

    Simple. lol. ;)
  • I'm not sure anyone would pay that much just to let him warm the bench to be honest.
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