Liverpool Fans Should Expect a Long Drawn Out Darren Bent Saga

Posted on 02. Jan, 2012 by Dominic Campbell in Blog, News

The date was 01 July 2009. I awoke with a great deal of optimism about the opening of the summer transfer market and was determined that my life for the subsequent weeks would revolve around football, with the internet becoming like a second home to me.

However, had I known then what I know now, I probably would have moved to the moon, or at the very least a middle eastern country where even thinking the word ‘football’ was a sin so forbidden that the punishment was an eternity of having to watch John Barnes Soccer Night repeats.

It took little to no time for Manchester City to make their first signing, which saw Gareth Barry end his long drawn out love affair with Liverpool – a saga which took up every paper in every news stand during the prior transfer window. It seemed that City where on a mission to buy every striker in the league with Santa Cruz next to join them, while Real Madrid were just hell bent on setting transfer records. The Galactico’s £56m signing of Kaka made the Brazilian the world’s most expensive player; a title that he held onto for a matter of days before Ronaldo signed for £80M.

Liverpool on the other hand splashed most of their budget with the £18m signing Glen Johnson – a deal which involved the club wiping out the debt Portsmouth still owed over the Crouch deal.

The days after Johnson’s signing proved to be a provoking time indeed. Rumours started circulating that Xabi Alonso wanted to leave the club and suddenly the internet was in raptures. Looting began, riots started at every corner and a few houses where burnt down, one of which I think Sean Dundee had occupied at the time.

Of course, none of this had actually happened, but I imagine that if the internet was a real place that we would most certainly have seen those events unfold. Almost every discussion was based on whether or not Alonso would leave. It became tedious; so much so that if the only things certain in life were death, taxes and yet more Alonso articles, then I would have gladly taken the former.

Inevitably Alonso made the switch. The following year came the Mascherano saga, and prior to the Alonso fiasco was the whole Gareth Barry debacle. Then came over seven months of hard-ball with Blackpool over Charlie Adam. Liverpool, in short, are destined to fall into a long drawn out transfer somewhere along the line.

And it looks like this year it will fall to Darren Bent. Liverpool are once again flirting with the idea of bringing the striker to Anfield almost a year after originally showing an interest; or so the papers would have you believe. And why wouldn’t there be speculation surrounding the player? He is exactly the type of striker the club needs; one whose main attribute is to find the back of the net. Not the goalkeeper, not the woodwork and certainly not row Z – the net!

Shortly after Bent signed for Aston Villa, Comolli admitted: “We thought of him, but we looked at his profile and thought that he would not be very complementary to Fernando Torres. He is a player who is, as the English say, a lone wolf. He needs to play alone in attack.”

But things have changed since then. Torres turned his back on Liverpool and the fans found a new hero in Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan, however, is not the goal scorer that the club so desperately needs, nor is he an out-and-out striker. What we have with Luis is a player who is able to create chance after chance. Unfortunately, though, a clinical finisher is absent from our starting 11 and thus, we find ourselves in a frustrating league position when frankly we should be much higher up the ladder.

Aston Villa’s denial of Bent leaving is irrelevant. They may deny any knowledge, but they also denied the Downing deal when the transfer was pretty much complete. Add to this the fact that Bent seems disillusioned with life at Villa, coupled with Liverpool in desperate need of a goal scorer, and you have the perfect recipe for a long drawn out saga.

If you like my ramblings you can follow me on twitter @dom_campbell. If not, that’s OK too.

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38 Responses to “Liverpool Fans Should Expect a Long Drawn Out Darren Bent Saga”

sam charles

02. Jan, 2012

14 mill and no more for this player
truered

02. Jan, 2012

i would welcome bent to lfc just due to his goal scoring ability, this will be a signing if it happens on states, his are better than most world class players per game…him carrol and suarez upfront would be a force no doubt…that said id only pay 10-15 mil for him no more….poddolski could be a better option as he can play both wing or striker
truered

02. Jan, 2012

stats lol
strebby

02. Jan, 2012

of all of the strikers people are mentioning or have been “limked” to us i thik you’re right on your twitter feed in saying bent is the most available and realistic nameon here along with luuk de jong, i fancy we’ll get one or the other, as far as the other names are concerened, i dont think its a case of we couldn’t afford the player if he came but more of the players choice i’ll go through why i hink any of the following names won’t join us in jauary (i’d argue we have a better chance of any of them in the summer IF we gain a CL spot)

Hazard= already stated himself he is only interested in moving to real madrid (i’d also be interested to know how many people jumping on the band wagon have actually seen the guy play oher than youtube highlight reels, a belgian international playing in the french league…)

Lavezzi and Cavani, both excellent players both i’d welcome with open arms however they’re doing pretty well at napoli and are still in the champions league, cant see them leaving in january.

Shaquiri, another excellent player but more of an attacking midfielder than striker, still in the champions league and if decided to move in january would have his pick of clubs from spain italy and germany and also over here and would be champions league cup tied… more likely to move in the summer.

Lucas Podolski….i love this guy, what a striker!! been saying for four years we should make a move, however of all the names i listed he is maybe the most likely to move on in jan, and with him no being champions league cup tied this season, again if he chose to move now would have the pick of 8-10 clubs.

all of the abouve would be realistic signing in the summer IF we gain that all important fourth spot

i agree wholeheartedly with dom… bent is the most realistic option we have of signing a striker with a proven premier league goalscoring pedigree, and would be an excellent asset to the club.
strebby

02. Jan, 2012

sorry about the typos, my keyboard is cack
Sam

02. Jan, 2012

Villa just bought Bent for $24 mil last year. They are not going to let him go for much less. Spending that much money on him or wasting time trying to sign him would do nothing more than show our commitment to mid-table football.
- Sam
  
  02. Jan, 2012
  
  Adding to that…his price will probably be even higher than that because the cost of strikers is going to be so inflated this window (African Cup of Nations)
  - strebby
    
    02. Jan, 2012
    
    but liverpool are not buying a striker because of the ACN so that ‘premium’ wouldnt apply to us, if he was moving to newcastle or chelsea then that could apply
    - Sam
      
      02. Jan, 2012
      
      The premium will apply to everyone. Teams are going to jack up the prices of strikers because there’s a market for them. It’s basic economics….
Mikey

02. Jan, 2012

LFC would be crazy buying Bent he’s not good enough
ash kop

02. Jan, 2012

remind me why spurs couldn’t wait to get rid of him?
siew3k

02. Jan, 2012

I do think bent is a very good goal scorer but the buck stops there. Sam is right about the cost (but not about mid table mediocrity OR the ACN mathematics in my opinion anyway). Why would they reluctantly sell a player that cost them 24 mil sterling who has done really well for them for anything less than 24 mil plus….it makes no sense.regardless of the fact we overpaid for Carroll he is still 22 years old and has resale value, another year and bent won’t.

Think what else we could get for 25 mil…..probably a top class striker like podolski and and an excellent winger…..if indeed they will come here.

I also don’t really buy into the whole “proven premier league players” with downing, Carroll and Henderson, while all undoubtedly talented, have really not hit the ground running as we would need this striker to do.

Basically, there is no such thing as a sure thing in football, but of we can’t get the closest thing possible I think we should stick to what we have.
ash kop

02. Jan, 2012

it’s as if the media is selling bent to us. can’t wait for Kenny to shut them all up.
siew3k

02. Jan, 2012

Zamora just scored the winner for fulham against arsenal….I don’t think there would be a massive difference in getting him or bent besides maybe……€20 million saved. Could be a smart buy.
cols

02. Jan, 2012

lads bent would be great signing!!! thank goodness for stevie returning. carroll looked very impressive from stevies crosses. luis is an automatic starter but wont score 20 goals. bent n carroll would be perfect.
slime corstein

02. Jan, 2012

bobby zamora? fuck no
scousesuarez

02. Jan, 2012

im not even bothering myself with it and I wont read or listen any rumors of this transfer window unless I see something official on lfc official site, as for bent I think that would be a same huge mistake as it was for carroll totally nonsense for me buying only english is not the solution for me kenny should look to foreign players as well stop buying english over rated players .
anfield rd dreamer

02. Jan, 2012

1; as others have said Bent is very unglamorous very under rated but also very reliable and consistent. When Harry fell out with him an sold him at Spurs he was actually their best performing striker and he has a very impressive record every where he has been and deserves a lot more recognition than he gets.

2; there is absolutely no way Aston Villa would sell him at a loss a year after buying him when he has practically a goal every 2 games and I would be astonished if Kenny, Comolli or FSG approved of the kind of fee needed for the age Bent is with question marks over whether Bent can perform on the big stage with Spurs career an England career being let downs (so far with England at least) and his decent performances all coming at mid table clubs. Also the Bent deal at Spurs was one of the factors that got Comolli sacked so once biten twice shy maybe. If he was available for 10 to 15 million I’d think they would take a chance but that would be huge loss for Villa an they don’t have to sell.
sparko82

02. Jan, 2012

Bent is not the name that excite’s me at all. He’s not World Class & that’s what we need! Doesn’t make sense with his age & his price.
topscout

03. Jan, 2012

there was a time for LFC to buy bent and now that time has passed.

Quality strikers are not available to buy this month or they will cost that xtra 10/15m+, cuzz selling clubs no that they hold all the aces.

i wud like KD to bring a striker in loan this month ie defoe, pandev, adebayor etc etc..his loan finishes this month, i think, and in the summer, i hope KD can then sign a Quality striker in the summer.

lets swap downing, kuyt for bent, albrighton, some cash either way.
Dave McQueen

03. Jan, 2012

Why not sign Adebayor for 10 million? We are less of a threat to city than spurs currently are..and for me he is a better player than bent
Hassan El- Zaher

03. Jan, 2012

Ok, Bent scores a lot… But, all his goals are either follows, penalties or, as they used to be, Ashley Young passes the ball to him with the goal empty… That definitely wont solve Liverpool’s problems. He’s so over-rated. And the only thing that would justify buying him is that if his price deflates to below 12M-15M….

If Liverpool are willing to pay 20M for a striker, then Soldado is the perfect fit. That’s what i call a natural finisher. And much more lethal along Suarez!
rock

03. Jan, 2012

Tevez is good option
heorge-lfc

03. Jan, 2012

i think kk should bring back TORRES!!!!!
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03. Jan, 2012

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Andy mac

03. Jan, 2012

Fowler
BangBangClub

03. Jan, 2012

Those who keep expecting LFC to sign Bent are rubbish.. Enough for LFC to sign any player from mediocre team at least for this season especially Bent. Sign Podolski and that would strengthen our strikers. Forget Bent…price is too high and not as smart as Podolski or Suarez in controlling the ball.
anfield rd dreamer

03. Jan, 2012

One thing that does make me laugh is this opinion that Podolski is somehow a higher performing player playing for a better team than Bent. Aston Villa are possibly the 7th or 8th team in England a country with 3 or 4 teams that can be considered European greats and Cologne are a midtable German side a league with 1 or 2 teams that can be considered european greats. Also although Podolski is having a fantastic season his career goalscoring ability is a goal every 2.42 games whilst Darren Bent’s career record is a slightly better goal every 2.29 games. I’m not saying Podolski is a bad player I think he is class, just not sure why people think Bent is a worse player because he plays for Villa, a team that is actally as good or better than Cologne.
- Sam
  
  03. Jan, 2012
  
  Podolski is more versatile. He can play wing, second striker, or lone striker. Bent plays nothing but lone wolf football. Podolski would be much better suited to pass and move soccer and would most likely link up well with Suarez.
Upper_Krust

03. Jan, 2012

I don’t think there is much difference between Podolski and Bent in terms of ability (although Bent is probably £10 million more expensive and 2 years older).

I think the problem with signing a big name striker is that Andy Carroll won’t get his chance, and if he doesn’t get his chance at this point, he will never come good in a Liverpool shirt. No he’s not a £35 M player, but he’s a darn sight better than most LFC fans give him credit for.

That said, we do still need a second striker. But that means signing someone under £10 Million. In that case we should probably go for Artjoms Rudnevs (Lech Poznan)…about £7.5M should be enough.

The problem positions for us are attacking midfield. I’d sign Shaqiri (£15 M) and one of either Hazard (£30 M) or Ozil (£20 M).

—————— Carroll/Rudnevs
Bellamy/Maxi – Hazard or Ozil – Shaqiri/Downing
————- Lucas ———- Gerrard
anfield rd dreamer

03. Jan, 2012

So your reasoning behind preferring Podolski is he is the type of player Suarez, Kuyt, Bellamy and Maxi is and Bent is just an out an out centre forward and Carroll is our only one of them? Understand what your saying but we have plenty of players in the squad already in the Podolski mould what we need is another out an out centre forward. Spurs have 3 Adebayor, Defoe an Pavlyuchenko, Arsenal have 3 the Korean they signed in summer, Van Persie an Chamakh, Chelsea have 3 Drogba, Torres an Lukaku, city have 3 Aguero, Dzeko an Balloteli and United have Berbatov, Chrcarito an Owen, we’ve just got Carroll. And they’ve all got plenty of the type of player you describe too in Mata, Sturridge, Rooney, Young, Van Der Vaart, Gervinho, Henry, Nasri, Silva… list goes on. Bent won’t be the one we’re after but expect us to at least try to sign 1 out an out centre forward to give the squad balance.
Hassan El- Zaher

03. Jan, 2012

SOLDADO!!
FrostedFlames

03. Jan, 2012

Dear God not this Bent rumor again! Why would we spend 20+ mil on another player from a midtable team who very likely cannot play pass and move? Just so Villa fans can come to Anfield and sing “What a waste of money”??? Jesus Christ! The only new English player I want to see at Anfield is Adam Johnson. The rest of those overpriced and overhyped mediocre players can stay put in their current teams, thank you very much.
Zach

04. Jan, 2012

@Dreamer

Podolski’s versatility is an indication that his finishing is in addition to a multitude of skills. He can pass, dribble, etc…Whereas Bent can only place himself in front of goal and put the ball in the back of the net. He contributes nothing to build-up play, and a such is dead weight. I admit that we would be a better team, with Bent instead of Carroll, against weaker teams but against big teams he would be just as unhelpful. I would liken Podolski to players like van Persie, Rooney, and Aguero in that they contribute to their teams efforts, with more than just a predatory instinct inside of the box. Though, like you I am not convinced that Podolski is the player we need.

I’d also like to say that Suarez is a good finisher, but the fact that he bears the burden of both creating and scoring has overtaxed his abilities. I’m confident that if we surround him more creative players, that he will begin scoring regularly. This year it has seemed like LFC is dependent upon Suarez creating chances for himself or creating for others.

If it is not clear, I would be pissed if LFC signs Bent. Even more so if it does turn into a protracted affair, leaving us toothless whilst Luis is out.
Leslee Umbel

06. Jan, 2012

This sucks man.
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tim

17. Jan, 2012

Its so long and drawn out that we were never interested in the first place…