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Why Did Bent Really Move?

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Ask any Sunderland fan what they now think of Darren Bent after he turned his back on the club that revitalised his football career.

After Harry Redknapp slated him missing an open goal, Steve Bruce came to Bent’s rescue and offered him a chance to start performing at the highest level again.

His first season with SAFC resulted in him winning the North East writers player of the year award along with 25 goals.

England manager Fabio Cappello noticed his scoring ability and even quoted him ‘having a bright future for England’. So why has Darren joined a club 17th in the league when he clearly enjoyed being a Sunderland player.

What has went on in the background? How can a player who last month said he wanted to become a Sunderland legend suddenly want £30k extra a week and hand in a transfer request?

Has his agent forced all of this? By the look on Darren’s face in his unveiling as a new Villa player he hardly looked ecstatic at joing Houllier’s new regime.

Bent said today as he turned his back on Sunderland: ‘People have asked why I swapped a top six club for one currently in the bottom four. But I believe Villa are in a false position, they have been sixth for the past three seasons, and it is a new challenge for me.”

It seems to make no sense but no player is bigger than the club and we can now move on with £24m at our disposal.

This money can go towards three to four new quality players in the crusade to finish in the top six this campaign.



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31 comments

  • craigy1874 says:

    Bitter bitter bitter just moving to a bigger club thats all – whats so hard to understand?

  • glensider says:

    Ambition. A step up a couple of levels to one of the countries major clubs. A genuine opportunity to win trophies, and improve his career.

  • revua says:

    I can understand the disappointment, Sunderland and becoming a good club and this is a right kick in the teeth, Yes villa are 17th but it’s all pretty false with the new manager etc. I think your a good club, your top six now but for how long? Bolton were doing well and just look at them slipping back. Villa have been top six for the last three seasons and its only because of a lack of a good goal scorer we have not progressed. One of the reasons you are top six is because of Bent, imagine where you would be if you had one of Villa’s strikers that have yet to score a Premiership goal this season instead of Bent. I don’t buy that Sunderland rescued Bent and did he some great favour (it was the other way round) as he was still a good player at spurs and would have been a good players where ever he went. You paid 16.5m in total for him so a nice 7.5m profit if all his add-on come off for you but there is no doubt in my mind that Bent is worth ever bit of 24m. I’ve wanted him for years and if he had gone to top three club he would be classed as one of the best strikers in the world. Who else can you buy that will get you those sorts of goals? Most players in this class will cost 30m plus and my suggestion is Sunderland will be better off blowing most of that fee on another striker that can give you 25 goals a season. Yes you could buy two or three strikers for that but that’s the mistake Villa have made for years, those type of strikers will have one good season or may get you 15 goals. Its only a few that can get 20+ most seasons and that’s worth the extra money. Good luck to you for the rest of the season.

  • GazJohnson says:

    The six points we took from you were nowt to do with Bent so how do you explain that? We will see come the end of the season who is the bigger club.

  • GazJohnson says:

    The six points we took from you were nowt to do with Bent so how do you explain that? We will see come the end of the season who is the bigger club.

  • Avillian136 says:

    ithink sunderland have done gr8 business and so have villa i mean villa have bought a 20+ goals a season striker amd sunderland have got 24 million and they have two strikers that could fill his gap in gyan (who is much like bent) and welbeck so sunderland and villa are in a betta position than b4 which is gd because i like both clubs, especially villa as im a villa fan lol bt gd luck for the season and im pretty sure both teams will b in the top 10 at least this season and sunderland could even get into europue

  • P.Avfc says:

    Well cant really say it was for money, we aren’t exactly man city are we! Probably on a higher wage but bent has said himself our position is false and by doing this deal it’s showing we are in it for the long run.

  • GazJohnson says:

    Yeah he looked over the moon in his conference and mentioned Sunderland more times than his new club. The Spurs fans were right about him and you will see his greedy ways soon enough. Good riddance, one assist in 18 months as we build a team heading up with young and hungry players.

  • tucky says:

    Sunderland did save Bents career 4th choice at Spurs so poorly thought of even his manager publically humiliated him. Sunderland pay £10 million which was ott at the time I remember Bent winning the catergory of ‘Bonkers Buy’ if we hadn’t stumped up so much god knows where he’d be. What gets me is the whole moving to a big club thing, I had ample amounts of respect for Bent the man single handedly saved us from relegation and for that were thankful but to turn round and state Villa the team Sunderland have beaten twice this season (even away and we have such a ***** poor away record) a team that is struggling at the bottom is bigger than a team in 6th? Yes on the last couple of seasons placings would show Villa to be bigger but if we go on the past all the time Liverpool would still be the best team in the league and Leeds would be challenging champions league but were not! Some people need to live in the present Sunderland are a team capable of beating the best results against City, Arsenal Chelsea, Liverpool and Man U would show we can handle the best in the league and thats the reason were in such a good position at this point and for some team struggling at the bottom with a glass bottom view of the lower leagues to claim they are better when the league clearly show that now at this time and in this season they are not are just delusional. I ve had Villa fans comment and tell us to stop whinging as they are going to jump us as we slide down the table and they go for europe since when did Villa fans become so looped? Be happy that you spent big but also question how can you build on it buying one player no matter how good doesn’t make a team Bent wouldn’t be a somebody without the midfielders who constantly set him up with clever through balls and don’t forget we had him fit all the way to December one injury and your back to square one. Theres no ambition in moving to a club lower than yourself and as stated thats not the Bent who played for us at the press conference I hope for Villas sake it works out because relegation could end up bankrupting the club and you could be the next Pompey.

  • revua says:

    Seems strange that some Sunderland fans are so short sighted to think Villa are a club that will be around the relegation places. A bit like Hollowway saying Villa are not a big club anymore so adam’s should not come to us. well lets see what Hollowway thinks now! The season is 38 games so lets see where we all finish come the end. Yes one players does not make a team but we already have the team that has been finishing 6th minus Milner but with the very able Albrighton to more than compensate. The issue we have had is all of our forwards have been off form all at the same time and now that will change. Bent goals were responsible for at least six points this season. If you had Abonlahor instead this season you would be now sitting 11th and also you have played an extra game than most. Not being derogatory to your club but bent is smart enough to realise you are not staying sixth all season and that Villa are always up there and there about. If we had Bent the last few seasons we would easily be a champions league team now. He plays with your players every week and do you really think he would leave if he thought you were going places? He see’s Villa creating sh-te loads of chances but just not putting them away and think blimey I could bury most of those chances! Your club has still done well out of the deal but I know I would take Bent over 24m every day of the week. I hope that all come out ok as I wish you well, I’m just so glad we have Bent.

  • P.Avfc says:

    Bankruptcy tucky? Do you even know what you are on about? Randy lerner knows exactly what he is doing, he is a billionaire and wouldnt folk out this money if we couldn’t afford it, we sold with for this price so it is just the money we made of that. He was bagged tons of goals for you and when he jumps to a bigger ship he is all of a sudden crap? Grow up.

  • P.Avfc says:

    *milner for

  • AVFC4ME says:

    “We will see come the end of the season who is the bigger club” I assume here that you are suggesting that if Sunderland finish higher than Aston Villa they are by rights ‘the bigger club’?? Possibly the most naive, dumbfounded comment ever!

  • glensider says:

    My sentiments exactly AVFC4ME. We have to appreciate though that they are angry, upset, and frustrated right now. They are also clearly extremely delusional. Sunderland bigger than AVFC? Pull the other one!

  • Klutch says:

    I believe this was a great business for Sunderland, i know Bent is a good player but there is no way his worth £24m and soon Villa fans will figure this out. I can’t believe some clubs are willing to drop stupid money on British players that have one great year, remember Wright-Phillips, Milner and Lescott? all had one amazing year and believed they where bigger then their club and now all are sitting on the bench. If one is willing to look around there is great buys around Europe (Sure its a big risk but so are the British talent) O and one more thing, Now Villa fans can’t complain that the so called top 4 clubs are destroying football cause their club has now gotten its hands in the dirt with everyone else.

  • AVFC4ME says:

    Agree – I would be angry and upset too – not so much at the deal (which you would have to think is pretty bloomin good for Sunderland?) but at the timing. What do Sunderland now do, sit it out for the rest of the season and hope for the best, then spend wisely? Or panic buy now and no doubt pay over the odds as everyone knows they’re cashed up and needy. Tricky situation. Anyway, I have a lot of respect for Sunderland and wish them all the best.

  • blues first says:

    As a neutral here (Chelsea fan), I can understd why you lads are upset abt Bent…not doing his best and all. Thats fair enough. But I’ve been following this bizarre transfer saga and I feel that you got the best deal for him, not Villa. You can now use that money as a war chest to finance maybe 30mil now and come up with a few good players and to lock up some of your better players to decent contracts. Sure, you have a right to be upset abt Bent and his recent antics. But when the dust settles and you calm down, you’ve got the money and they’ve gotten an enigmatic, up and down player who has a bit of an attitude. In the end, I wager that you’ve got the better deal here…

  • WestStandEnclosure says:

    Benty used you lot to get himself back in the shop window after failure at spurs. Sorry guys we did warn you he was a wrong un when he signed for you……….twitter by name twitter by nature!!

  • lerneravfc says:

    you do realise your club is spinning you a line right?they were so dissapointed at the prospect of losing bent they made no effort whatsoever to keep him.As for him coming for the money,we all know it doesn`t matter in the end,all that matters is whos shirt he is scoring in.

  • eltoro says:

    are there any spurs fans that aren’t juankers!

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