Darren Bent

[AndyBM]

pay the £3m, get another 50 games out of him and possibly another 20 goals

simple

[smetrov]

He's Liverpool bound for me. The only thing clouding the issue is that the scousers are so far up their own arse, that they don't see him as a good enough footballer. However with 1 win in 9 for Liverpool, and a player with a 1 in 2 goal record readily available pretty sure Rodgers will be interested.

Just hope its straight cash - I really fear we will end up with Jonjo !

[Richard]

If he is to be sold in January then why pay 3m now, total waste of money

[PieFacE]

Have you not been paying attention last 3 years

Care to elaborate on this or will you just ignore it 'cos you have nothing?

[Demitri_C]

Unbelievable. For the sake of 3m and potentially losing 50m if we go down we are worried about a measley 3m

pathetic

[Jimmyvilla18]

Cant it just be the simple fact Bent has been out injured and isn't sharp enough yet. The first game he was fit for was Arsenal. If Lambert didn't think he was sharp enough in training he decided to go for a different option. This worked against Arsenal to an extent by getting a point, Bent still didn't look sharp so left him out and went with a squad that should have enough to beat Reading at home making sure Bent was ready for QPR the weekend?

[VillaCas]

I think I am safe in saying that Lambert has not dealt with this situation well at all.

I wouldn't think you are safe in making that assumption at all!!! Neither you nor I know what the situation with Bent is. I could well be that Lambert's hands are tied and he has been ordered not to pick him (maybe because it triggers a payment or because a deal for Bent is already done and they wish to avoid injury or a million other reasons)

Given that we know nothing of this, I think I'm safe to say that it could easily be that PL is handling a very tricky situation very well indeed

[dont_do_it_doug.]

Unbelievable. For the sake of 3m and potentially losing 50m if we go down we are worried about a measley 3m

pathetic

Says who?

We spent £18m on him in the first place to keep us up, so the evidence suggests you're wrong.

[markavfc40]

^{When he leaves I can't say I will miss him. I have never really taken to him despite his goals. I think its down to his lack of work rate and the fact if he isn't scoring he is doing next to nothing. When the chips are down he isn't the kind of player that will bust a gut for you. He is arguably the best goalscorer we have had since Dean Saunders but sadly he doesn't have the heart that Deano had. He'd have sweat blood for Villa where has Bent hardly breaks sweat.}

^{He will score goals for his new club but so be it. We will hopefully spend the 10 - 12 mill we get for him wisely and move onwards and upwards. Facts are that despite Bent being here we have continued in the main to struggle. He is a luxury player. The final piece in the jigsaw if you like but as things stand we are lacking the players to supply him and we certainly can't afford to carry him.}

[Jarpie]

Cant it just be the simple fact Bent has been out injured and isn't sharp enough yet. The first game he was fit for was Arsenal. If Lambert didn't think he was sharp enough in training he decided to go for a different option. This worked against Arsenal to an extent by getting a point, Bent still didn't look sharp so left him out and went with a squad that should have enough to beat Reading at home making sure Bent was ready for QPR the weekend?

Very easily can be this, and Bent haven't exactly been firing with all cylinders after his long injury in spring.

[cudoz]

I thought it was quite well known thet Neil Moxley talks rubbish? He's probably read the theory on here and decided to call it an exclusive.

[smetrov]

Unbelievable. For the sake of 3m and potentially losing 50m if we go down we are worried about a measley 3m

pathetic

I find it this hard to beleive. I couldn't see Lambert standing for that. I do beleive Lambert when he says it is his own decision - whether that be Bent not training well, Bent just no fancied, A deal with a new club lined up - whatever I do beleives its Lamberts decision

[AshVilla]

I see today that Redknapp wants Bent back

Now i know Lerner has made baffling decisions in the past which make no sense but surely he isn't stupid enough to sell him to one of our relegation rivals

[Demitri_C]

After the whole Curtis Davies fiasco I do believe this is something the club would do.

they wouldn't play him because if he triggered a certain number of league games he would get a 15% pay increase so froze him out and sold him to blose. This is why I dont think its inaccurate Dont_do_it_doug

time will tell but if he doenst feature for 3 games up until January we know why

[Zatman]

well the fact Davies was also crap didnt help

as for Bent to Liverpool I dont see it, Rodgers didnt take to Carroll who is probably a better "footballer" than Bent

[Qwpzxjor1]

Personally I think Bent has hinted to Lambert/Randy that he would like a move away, and because of that Lambert wont pick him. Lambert will only want players on the pitch who want to play for the club. He was very open about that after the whole Dempsy transfer bid. If that is true and Bent wants to move away then **** him and fair play to Lambert.

Though, i'm not ITK or anything, it's just what I suspect.

I completely agree. When you've got such a young team then passion is key. You can't risk one person undermining all of that.

Considering how much fuss he kicked up at Spurs and Sunderland when he wanted a move away, it points towards it being handled quite well actually. I think a move away has already been agreed in principal, there's no other reason you wouldn't even have him on the bench in a must-win game.

[briny_ear]

Part of the problem here seems to be that the press are a bit ratted off with the way Lambert deals with them and fails even to pretend to take their questions seriously. He reminds me of Johnny Gregory without the jokes (or the voice projection). Two papers, the Mail and the Guardian have now printed in full the transcript of their press conference on Friday where they tried to shed light on why Bent wasn't even on the bench for Reading. I replicate here the Guardian article so as to avoid the easy dismissal of the issue because it's an article in the Mail. Stuart James of the Guardian is well informed on the Villa and is generally sympathetic to us.

Darren Bent: 22 questions about Aston Villa's record signing

Paul Lambert was quizzed by reporters after Tuesday's game, when Bent was not even named as a substitute

Paul Lambert's decision not to name Darren Bent even among Aston Villa's substitutes in the past two games has been the subject of much debate, not least because it seems particularly odd to jettison a proven goalscorer at a time when the team are in the lower reaches of the Premier League and struggling to score.

Although Christian Benteke, who scored the only goal in Villa's 1-0 victory over Reading on Tuesday night, has impressed since arriving from Genk in August and justified his starting place in attack, it is hard to understand why Bent, a £24m club-record signing, and a player who has scored 102 Premier League goals, at a rate of one every two games, is unable to get on the bench ahead of Jordan Bowery.

Bowery has scored 10 league goals for Chesterfield and his Premier League career consists of seven minutes as a substitute at the Etihad stadium, when Villa were 5-0 down against Manchester City.

Following the Reading match, Lambert, the Villa manager, was asked a total of 22 questions about Bent's absence. By the time the press conference was over, Lambert had insisted that he rated Bent as a player and rejected any suggestion that there was a problem with the striker's attitude or his application in training.

In other words, nobody was any the wiser as to why Bent has been frozen out. This is a transcript of the press conference questions about Bent:

Question Although Benteke had a big game tonight, people will mention Darren wasn't on the bench

Paul Lambert It was the same as Saturday. I just picked the same group that's deserved that chance to keep going. And I'll always do what I think's right for Aston Villa. That's what I will always do.

Q You do realise you are running a risk when with 10 minutes to go, instead of a £24m signing sat on the bench, you've got Jordan Bowery, who, with respect to him, he's not got the same credentials.

PL But you can't talk about ifs, buts and maybes. The reality is we won. I'll always make an honest judgment who I think should play

Q Fair enough. You'll get slaughtered if you don't win. But, just for record, I know we've been around the houses, but we were all looking at the team-sheet, it was a big game tonight and we were all wondering why you don't at least have the safety net of putting a proven Premier League goalscorer at least on the bench. Have you got a problem with Darren Bent?

PL None, honestly. Absolutely none

Q You just don't rate him as a player?

PL No, I do, I do. I've got 25 guys to look after. The most important thing is this club and I'll always make decisions that I think is right for this club. And I'll live and die by them. That's the nature of the beast.

Q How did Darren take it when you told him he was not on the bench?

PL I just read the team out. Listen, you've got more to worry about when you've got a game of football to play. And the lads that are going to take the field of play and the lads that are going to be on the bench, you've got to get them focused on the game. And that's all I try and do, pick a team that I think will win us the game

Q Did he stomp off?

PL Nah, nah. I would tell you. I swear to God I would tell you. Honestly.

Q How would you describe his attitude after you read the team out?

PL Fine. I read the team out and I've always done that. As I said, the most important thing is Aston Villa, that's the most important thing.

Q Have you told him what he's got to do to get back into the team?

PL Any player that you have, you work hard you get in the side you stay in the side. You play on merit.

Q Does that suggest he's not working hard enough then?

PL No, I never said that.

Q Well, he didn't stay in the side, did he?

PL No, but that's got nothing to do with not working hard enough. It's just that I've got to change things that I think will affect the game.

Q Will you listen to offers for him in January because, for whatever reason, he doesn't seem to fit the bill for you?

PL Honestly, my main concern is winning games for this club. We've got to win games. The crowd are brilliant, they're right behind you, and I'll still pick a team that I think will win us games.

Q Can I clarify, you've got no problem with his training or application, or anything like that?

PL No, none. Nothing whatsoever.

Q Do you expect him to get a chance before January to win back his place?

PL Everybody is the same. I watch them in training every day and I see how they play and how they train. And then on a Saturday, you pick a team that you think will win.

Q With Benteke scoring tonight, have you been proved right?

PL That's the game, you live and die by your decisions. As I said, I'll do my best for this club and I'll keep going.

Q Does he need an arm around his shoulder, is he miserable, is he down?

PL Who?

Q That record signing? Has there been any kind of conversation between the two of you about getting back in?

PL As I say, I'll talk with people.

Q There was an internet rumour beforehand that Darren left the stadium and had to be called back to join the group.

PL I haven't heard one thing. I haven't heard nothing. As I say, I've got to try and win a game.

Q Can you see him playing again under you?

PL Yeah, listen, I never rule anything out. You don't. I keep saying it, I'll pick a team and a squad that I think will win. I ain't going to pick a team and a squad that I think will lose. The game's about winning. I want to try and pick a team that I think will win. I've got 26 guys to look after, some are injured. If you make it just an individual thing, it's a team game. You need everybody to pull the same way and that's hopefully what we'll create here.

Q Can you understand why people are perplexed by this decision, given that this was a guy you made your captain as well?

PL Yeah, I understand your questions. But you get the questions every Friday, Friday, Friday. It's the same answers you'll probably get. I don't know what else you can write about it.

Q To be fair, to put it into some perspective, it was a big game today. I know you say you don't look at the table but 28,000 people that came tonight do. We do. And in London, in the newspaper offices, they're all looking at it and wondering why a man who was signed two years ago to provide the goals to keep the club in the Premier League doesn't figure under you, given the fact that you blew some smoke up his backside when he came, you made him your captain and now all of a sudden he's out. And I know you've got 20-odd professionals to look after but that's the reason for asking the question.

PL I understand where you are coming from. I totally respect your jobs and what you've got to ask me but you'll get the same kind of answer.

Q We're only asking what the punters are talking about.

PL Listen, I totally respect what you're doing and what your questions are. All I can do is give you an honest answer. If I was going to lie to you, honestly I would lie. I ain't lying. I'm telling you the truth.

Q If I could put it another way, it's hard to understand why a team that hasn't scored a lot of goals can't find a place for someone who throughout his career has scored one in two in the Premier League for years and years. And you can't find a place for him even on the bench. We're trying to see what the thought process is for you making that decision so that we can understand it.

PL I do pick a team as honestly and openly as I can. I think the decision is the right one. You can't please everybody all the time. You leave out people like Stephen Ireland or Charles N'Zogbia, big players that you leave out. It's never easy to pick a team because you've got that many lads to look after. I'll say it and I'll say it again, I've got 25/26 lads that I have to look after. But as I said before, I've never had one problem with any of the lads.

Posted by

Stuart James

Wednesday 28 November 2012 13.23 GMT

The Guardian

[SikhInTrinity]

Lets get one thing straight Randy has not said he will not pay the £3Million, the decision is totally down to PL, PL possibly feels with possibly 12million he can get better value to strengthen the squad rather than paying £3million for Bent.

[briny_ear]

Lets get one thing straight Randy has not said he will not pay the £3Million, the decision is totally down to PL,

Just out of interest, how do you know that?

[VillaGoMarching]

I actually admire Lambert for the front he's putting up, he's having to shield a shit load of questions on Bent, i mean look at that transcript, it's **** ridiculous.

Personally since last season, since we sold Ash and Downing i've felt we needed to cash in on Bent ASAP. The guy has no supply line, before hand McLeish weren't interested in supplying him, and Lambert is basically building a team without him, and i completely respect that too.

Time will tell if we're doing the right thing, but in my eyes i'm seeing an improvement in results and performances since Bent has been out of the team.