Tottenham Hotspur Blogs

Hallowe’en will be almost upon us by the time David Bentley takes a gentle swagger down London’s Seven Sisters Road and confirms his status as Arsenal’s newest hate figure.

Not only did Bentley demand to leave the Gunners in 2006 but he had the audacity to take a verbal swipe at Arsene Wenger on his way to Blackburn.

Then he went on to prove there is life after Wenger by forcing his way into the England team and this week commanding a transfer fee of £15million.

Worse than all that, he has confessed to being a boyhood Tottenham supporter.



So how will he feel when he runs out at the Emirates in a Spurs shirt on October 29 to the kind of reception the normally placid Gooners like to reserve for Ashley Cole and Teddy Sheringham?

‘I can’t wait, I’m buzzing,’ grinned Bentley. ‘I haven’t been sleeping, I’ve just been thinking about putting on the shirt and running out in a north London derby. I’ve always wanted to play in one. It will be one of the best moments of my career, up there with the England thing.’

Bentley is not afraid to confront controversy, a refreshing quality in a sport awash with players spouting meaningless platitudes and press officers issuing faceless club statements from Blackberries.

He was booed by England fans after withdrawing himself from the European Under 21 Championship at the last minute and was jeered by Arsenal fans who decided he did not have the talent to slate Wenger’s transfer policy publicly.

‘That’s what people go and watch football for,’ said Bentley. ‘Sometimes they don’t just go to watch the football, they go to watch the characters. Or they come to abuse me. I get all the banter and that. I enjoy it, it’s what you want.

‘If you’re a footballer you don’t want a boring life. That sort of thing can inspire. If you don’t buzz off it that’s probably why you fail.’

Although Bentley relishes his role as a pantomime villain, he knows he was lucky to receive an education at Arsenal’s Academy. Good habits were acquired, talents nurtured and his strong personality encouraged.

His move to Spurs via Blackburn, however, represents a new beginning at a club he loves, with a tradition to entertain and under Juande Ramos, a manager with attacking principles.

‘Tottenham were the first club I watched and Gazza was my favourite player when I was growing up,’ said Bentley before travelling with the Spurs squad to Holland for pre-season games against Celtic and Borussia Dortmund. ‘I had a shirt with Gazza’s name on the back.


‘For me, he was everything as a player. He enjoyed his football and enjoyed his life. He played with freedom. I remember that goal he scored (against Arsenal) with no boot on. He was running through and lost his boot and put it in the bottom corner with his sock. That’s probably my best memory from White Hart Lane.

‘I’d love to be that sort of player but first I’ve got to earn the right to play here. I honestly never thought Spurs would be interested in me, they had so many great midfielders, but as soon as I knew they were, I was trying my nuts off to get here.’

Bentley grew up in Hertfordshire, a Spurs heartland. ‘My mates are all Tottenham boys, season ticket holders. They’ve all got the tattoos and stuff and they were always telling me to come to Tottenham. I’d say: “I want to, but they don’t want me”. But now they do.’

The arrival of Bentley has proved the perfect antidote for the departure to Liverpool of Robbie Keane, who was adored and will be missed. His No 10 shirt, the playmaker’s favourite, remains vacant. Bentley will take No 5, fuelling the belief that more flair players are on the way.

Russian pair Andrei Arshavin and Roman Pavlyuchenko are expected to sign in the next few days and others will probably follow, including £200,000 Derby goalkeeper Stephen Bywater, as back-up for Heurelho Gomes.

The feelgood factor in the camp surpasses the normal mood of pre-season optimism and seems bright enough to survive the inevitable departure of Dimitar Berbatov.

Manchester United are gradually closing in on the Bulgaria striker and with no bids from Barcelona or elsewhere, Tottenham might have to accept Old Trafford’s £20m offer with improved £4m add-ons.

Spurs were hoping to spark a bidding war and chairman Daniel Levy — who clashed with Rafa Benitez over Liverpool’s pursuit of Robbie Keane — is reluctant to sell to Sir Alex Ferguson after criticising United’s pursuit of Berbatov.

While Tottenham have conceded they might be prepared to accept around £28m rather than the £38m being demanded, Ramos is ready to pack his moody star off now.



The Spaniard has overhauled the squad with a flurry of signings that will generate debate about whether this is finally the season when Spurs overtake Arsenal, surprisingly inactive in the market this summer.

Now Ramos must show how to cram Bentley, Pavlyuchenko, Giovani dos Santos, Arshavin and Luka Modric into the same team.

‘I feel like something is growing here and it’s something I want to be a part of,’ said Bentley when asked if Spurs are on an upward curve. ‘You can be just a number at another club and be in the background. But hopefully I can play a part in something really good at a place that is definitely growing .’

After years in Arsenal’s shadow is this the season when the cockerel crows again?

‘It’s hopefully looking that way,’ smiled Bentley, but even he is not brash enough to say it for certain. ‘Only time will tell. Arsenal have a good team now but so have we. Let’s see who comes out on top.’

Gascoigne famously sank Arsenal in 1991 in a north London derby and Bentley, who played alongside his hero at Martin Keown's testimonial four years ago, is relishing his chance to do the same.

'I can't wait,' he said after being unveiled as Spurs' £17million signing.

'I've not been sleeping at the moment thinking about running out there. I've always wanted to play in a north London derby, it will brilliant.

'Hopefully they want to see characters. They don't always go just to watch the football, they'll come to abuse me. I'll get the banter but I'll enjoy that. You don't to have a boring life as a footballer.'

'If you don't get a buzz off that's probably where you fail.

'There is nothing quite like running out for your country but it's probably going to be the best moment in my career, one of them anyway.'

'Bentley and his friends idolised Gazza but the chance for a trial at Spurs never arose, and it was Wenger who polished Bentley's talent before he shone at Ewood Park as a right midfielder or support striker.'

'You know how it works, life isn't perfect at the time. I played for the Arse, as you call it,' he added. 'That was a time in my career, a good time to grow up playing with a lot of talented kids.'

'All the Tottenham boys who are my friends have Spurs tattoos and are mad fans. They kept telling me 'you've got to come to Tottenham' and I said 'I want to but they don't want me'. Now they do so my mates are buzzing now.'

Spurs have closed the gap with their spending since then and last season ended
their nine-year trophy drought, which Bentley hopes is a sign that the two clubs will soon be competing at the same level.

He added: 'Hopefully it's looking that way but only time will tell. I want to be a part of that. Only time will tell and only performances on the football pitch will do that.'

Bentley is also hoping his efforts will put him in the frame for a regular England place and a chance to qualify for the World Cup after missing out on Euro 2008.

'We owe the country, don't we?" he said. 'It was not nice missing out on it and it would be nice to put that right.'

Meanwhile, head coach Juande Ramos is not giving special treatment to Dimitar Berbatov despite the striker wanting a move and chairman Daniel Levy being wary
of the negative influence the Bulgaria international could have on the dressing room.

Ramos said: 'He is a Tottenham player and we are happy that he is here. As one of our players, of course we would expect him to line up (on the first day of the season).'

Spurs are still working on other transfer targets, with the priority being a striker to step in for Robbie Keane, and Berbatov if he leaves for Manchester United.

Russia forward Andrei Arshavin will accept a move to Spurs if a fee is agreed with Zenit St Petersburg, and despite positive sounds coming from his advisor the 27-year-old is understood to be just one on a list of possibilities sporting director Damien Comolli is working on with Levy.

Real Zaragoza striker Diego Milito is unlikely to be one of those players, according to the 29-year-old's agent. Fernando Hidalgo told Diario Equipo. 'Tottenham was an option until today, but they are not anymore.'

Meanwhile, Derby goalkeeper Stephen Bywater is set to join Spurs as deputy for Heurelho Gomes.

Rams boss Paul Jewell told the Derby Evening Telegraph: 'Tottenham came in with a bid for Stephen and the player is very keen to go, which is fully understandable.

'I would like to have kept him but it is a move which appeals to him and we wish him well.'




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