David Bentley

[Craig_J]

Sounds bitter about Spurs. How the **** does he know how Liverpool are run?

More to the point how the **** is he commenting on football?

Bentley put minimal effort into his career after arriving at us. You only have to look back to when he rejected the England under 21 call up to see the sense of entitlement he has and how far he was willing to go to become the best. Compare him with someone like Gareth Bale and it shows even more so.

After landing a big contract at us he was happy to just see that out and now he's realised there's no way for him to earn enough to be bothered to wake up in the mornings he's walking away.

Why has he got a World Cup gig? Why give it to someone who says they no longer like football and who wouldn't know anything about winning mentality anyway?

Even if Bentley has urged Lallana to go to Liverpool I doubt he'd give two ****s what a has been failed footballer like Bentley has to say about it.

 

[Seedy Ron]

More to the point how the **** is he commenting on football?

Quite.

"My love for the game went a little bit and I didn't want to carry on just for the fact of paying me money". But I'll happily guff about it like I know what I'm talking about for money.

 

[markysimmo]

The guy is a cretin

 

[SteveAWOL]

@MirrorFootball: 6) EXCLUSIVE: Retired-at-29 David Bentley on how he never liked pro football that much. http://mirr.im/1qGTk3Q

 

[PochettinoPochettinoPochettino]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...entley-fears-football-no-place-mavericks.html

Quite a decent interview. I like his take on life. Football isn't everything really and it's got no characters in it which is true.

 

[spitshine]

Good interview.

Though, I wouldn't use Ross Barkley as an example. Thought he was an embarrassment the way he celebrated against a poor Bournemouth side, who already conceded 5 goals and the goal itself was hardly anything to remember.

 

[DubaiSpur]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...entley-fears-football-no-place-mavericks.html

Quite a decent interview. I like his take on life. Football isn't everything really and it's got no characters in it which is true.

It was a good interview, but it seemed a bit...well, confused. He says he didn't like the photoshoots, press inquisitiveness and publicity that came with football, which is fair enough - I imagine I wouldn't either. But then he goes on to suggest that not liking such things actually hindered his career (well, either he suggested it or Joe Bernstein interpreted his comments that way), and then, even more confusingly, calls for more characters in the game to prevent it becoming emotionless and prosaic.

That's just going backwards and forwards an awful lot. Today, players who keep their head down and are sensible, level-headed young men are bloody gold dust to clubs all over Europe - the crop of players coming up now are more professional and (simultaneously) less prone to glitz and glamour than ever before. Most of them stick to their football and related sponsorship activities - very few actually go the Beckham mega-branding route, because it's increasingly clear that there's enough money to be made just leveraging your football skills without turning yourself into some glamour idol on top of it. Same thing with the more homely comforts of life outside the glitzy football bubble - more and more players are forsaking that scene (or at least, keeping it on the down low and out of sight) in favour of appearing to maintain a homely image, because of the universal ubiquity of social media and smartphones and the corresponding desire on the part of their clubs to avoid any unwanted publicity on account of players' indiscretions.

The evolution of football has been *towards* the sort of sporting environment that Bentley would have preferred, not away from it. The increasing professionalism across the game has played an integral role in this - yes, it has a downside in that Barkley-esque acts of spontaneity and joy are probably more rare, but that is counter-acted by the fact that football as a whole is growing more and more amenable for someone with Bentley's preferences for a quiet career out of the limelight.

So, like I said, it seemed a bit confused to me. I'm happy he's found peace and relative tranquility - I wish him well, even though it appears as though he didn't like his time with us very much. But he could probably do with either articulating his thoughts better or sticking it to Joe Bernstein for misintepreting what he said.

 

[parklane1]

All i know ( or want too) is that Bentley must be one of our worse signings, 17 mill ( if i remember rightly) and that was a lot of money then.

 

[Grays_1890]

That's just going backwards and forwards an awful lot. Today, players who keep their head down and are sensible, level-headed young men are bloody gold dust to clubs all over Europe - the crop of players coming up now are more professional and (simultaneously) less prone to glitz and glamour than ever before.

I think alot of that comes from the media in the UK. In the UK the Media demand a touch and feel player, the players we can relate to and then when they show a glimpse of that they get slaughtered, ala Rooney, I think that adds to a confusing industry and that creates confused players. Keep head down appear aloof, appear too much get called out for being attention seeking. I know a PR person who works in football and its a fact that clubs walk on egg shells on what they do in fear the media will take what has happened and twist it, that breeds into whats told to the players. Its generally accepted that the only thing that won't get slaughtered are Christmas hospital drops and even then the press behind closed doors slag them off cynically.

Easy to say "A players made for life" I read that alot yesterday on social media relating to Vincent, but Gary Speed should be a lesson to the whole of football

 

[Lemonade Money]

I heard from someone who knows him, that he was never really interested in football, and just wanted to make enough money to open his own club.

 

[Grays_1890]

I heard from someone who knows him, that he was never really interested in football, and just wanted to make enough money to open his own club.

Wow sounds like me, I never wanted to work in travel, wanted enough money to open a bar.

Problem is Travel pays feck all

 

[T-C]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...entley-fears-football-no-place-mavericks.html

Quite a decent interview. I like his take on life. Football isn't everything really and it's got no characters in it which is true.

Decent interview, but I don't buy into the comments about characters/mavericks.

I can remember people talking about a lack of 'characters' in the game from the late 90s onwards. When exactly was this golden age when every player was considered a character? The funniest stories I've read about what players used to get up to came after their careers were finished.

Look at our current squad. Don't they look like they're enjoying themselves? Its hard to imagine that there won't be plenty going on behind the scenes that will make funny anecdotes in the future.

I actually found his interviews from a couple of years ago more insightful. He didn't like having to play in systems, didn't like the focus on stats, didnt have a great desire to win, and stopped enjoying football as a result. Basically he didn't like the professionalism that has developed in football, but was still happy to take the money until his Spurs contract ran down.

What exactly qualifies him to be an agent now? I can't imagine any young players looking at him and wanting to emulate what he's achieved on or off the pitch.

Does he have a commercial sporting background? Legal training? Anything beyond being able to say "go out and enjoy yourself son". All aspects of sport have become more structured, more professional.

If he's found he can enjoy football again and has other successful business ventures, then maybe he should stick to being a fan rather than trying to get involved professionally again.

 

[PochettinoPochettinoPochettino]

Decent interview, but I don't buy into the comments about characters/mavericks.

I can remember people talking about a lack of 'characters' in the game from the late 90s onwards. When exactly was this golden age when every player was considered a character? The funniest stories I've read about what players used to get up to came after their careers were finished.

Look at our current squad. Don't they look like they're enjoying themselves? Its hard to imagine that there won't be plenty going on behind the scenes that will make funny anecdotes in the future.

I actually found his interviews from a couple of years ago more insightful. He didn't like having to play in systems, didn't like the focus on stats, didnt have a great desire to win, and stopped enjoying football as a result. Basically he didn't like the professionalism that has developed in football, but was still happy to take the money until his Spurs contract ran down.

What exactly qualifies him to be an agent now? I can't imagine any young players looking at him and wanting to emulate what he's achieved on or off the pitch.

Does he have a commercial sporting background? Legal training? Anything beyond being able to say "go out and enjoy yourself son". All aspects of sport have become more structured, more professional.

If he's found he can enjoy football again and has other successful business ventures, then maybe he should stick to being a fan rather than trying to get involved professionally again.

Good point, could be more for him to come back into the business and make some money.

 

[DubaiSpur]

I think alot of that comes from the media in the UK. In the UK the Media demand a touch and feel player, the players we can relate to and then when they show a glimpse of that they get slaughtered, ala Rooney, I think that adds to a confusing industry and that creates confused players. Keep head down appear aloof, appear too much get called out for being attention seeking. I know a PR person who works in football and its a fact that clubs walk on egg shells on what they do in fear the media will take what has happened and twist it, that breeds into whats told to the players. Its generally accepted that the only thing that won't get slaughtered are Christmas hospital drops and even then the press behind closed doors slag them off cynically.

Easy to say "A players made for life" I read that alot yesterday on social media relating to Vincent, but Gary Speed should be a lesson to the whole of football

Yeah, fair enough. I'm not denying that life in the fish bowl that is top-flight professional football can be by turns confusing and immensely restricted due to the possibility of a wolfish press jumping on you for something or the other. But it seems to me like he wants characters in the game but simultaneously doesn't want them to be scrutinized or develop glamour lifestyles in line with what usually happens in professional sports around the world - you can't have your cake and eat it, mate.

I actually found his interviews from a couple of years ago more insightful. He didn't like having to play in systems, didn't like the focus on stats, didnt have a great desire to win, and stopped enjoying football as a result. Basically he didn't like the professionalism that has developed in football, but was still happy to take the money until his Spurs contract ran down.

What exactly qualifies him to be an agent now? I can't imagine any young players looking at him and wanting to emulate what he's achieved on or off the pitch.

Does he have a commercial sporting background? Legal training? Anything beyond being able to say "go out and enjoy yourself son". All aspects of sport have become more structured, more professional.

If he's found he can enjoy football again and has other successful business ventures, then maybe he should stick to being a fan rather than trying to get involved professionally again.

I think he does hit upon an essential point, though - which is that football is in danger of becoming so professional and regimented that the ordinary fan ceases to understand most or all of what goes on before, after and even during games - nor does he have a chance to be anything more than a fan, because of everything becoming so professional that priors and degrees are needed to understand the very basics of it, let alone participate in it.

There's something to be said for a bit of simple magic and enjoyment on the pitch keeping the game real and tangible enough for fans to connect to in a way that doesn't involve Spielverlagerung-type tactical analyses and reams of data analytics. A bit of an off-the-cuff, simplistic approach to running a club that allows fans to harbor their impossible dreams. And as for Bentley's chances as an agent, he has a better chance than most on the basis of having been a Premiership footballer, having realized what some players are going through when they struggle to adapt to the fishbowl of modern football, and having gained some experience outside of football running his restaurants and associated businesses. Good luck to him.

Edit: Also, you really can't imagine young players wanting to emulate what he's achieved? 99.99% of all footballers would love to reach the heights Bentley reached, playing for a top ten club in the foremost league in English football (as we were when he signed for us), scoring a wonder-goal against Arsenal, reaching the CL and earning a shedload of money (by a regular Joe's standards) doing so.

The world isn't only full of Eriksens, Alderweirelds and Llorises - there are far more footballers happy to reach a relatively high standard and leave it at that, contributing where they can, winning where they can and what they can but otherwise content with being just *good* in a world where that sets you above the majority of your peers anyway.

 

[T-C]

I think he does hit upon an essential point, though - which is that football is in danger of becoming so professional and regimented that the ordinary fan ceases to understand most or all of what goes on before, after and even during games - nor does he have a chance to be anything more than a fan, because of everything becoming so professional that priors and degrees are needed to understand the very basics of it, let alone participate in it.

There's something to be said for a bit of simple magic and enjoyment on the pitch keeping the game real and tangible enough for fans to connect to in a way that doesn't involve Spielverlagerung-type tactical analyses and reams of data analytics. A bit of an off-the-cuff, simplistic approach to running a club that allows fans to harbor their impossible dreams.

Got to say that I don't see anything dangerous about this at all. The professionalism of sport means that there are now more football or sports industry jobs than ever. If someone wants to get involved professionally they can through everything from Finance and Legal to Marketing, stadium operations, team operations or analytics.

Like music and fashion, typical football and sports jobs are in high demand and don't pay particularly well.

If you mean fans access to the bit that happens on the pitch, then I don't see anything wrong with taking the marginal gains approach to sport at its highest levels. It certainly doesn't ruin my enjoyment or even impact on my experience as a fan. I don't see football now as being any more sterile than 20 years ago.

 

[T-C]

And as for Bentley's chances as an agent, he has a better chance than most on the basis of having been a Premiership footballer, having realized what some players are going through when they struggle to adapt to the fishbowl of modern football, and having gained some experience outside of football running his restaurants and associated businesses. Good luck to him.

He has a better chance than many, but I don't think that simply being an ex player necessarily qualifies someone to be a good agent.

Bentley isn't the first ex pro to come out with the "saving young players from wasting their money" or "help young players to avoid the mistakes I made" lines. It isn't as though these are great revelations that nobody has thought about before.

A quick search will find multiple ex players saying the same thing. Most didn't go anywhere as an agent, others have partnered with career business or commercial people to create agencies.

It sounds like he wants to come back to the UK for his family, he needs an income, and is targeting one of the more lucrative aspects of the football business. Good luck to him.

 

[DubaiSpur]

He has a better chance than many, but I don't think that simply being an ex player necessarily qualifies someone to be a good agent.

Bentley isn't the first ex pro to come out with the "saving young players from wasting their money" or "help young players to avoid the mistakes I made" lines. It isn't as though these are great revelations that nobody has thought about before.

A quick search will find multiple ex players saying the same thing. Most didn't go anywhere as an agent, others have partnered with career business or commercial people to create agencies.

It sounds like he wants to come back to the UK for his family, he needs an income, and is targeting one of the more lucrative aspects of the football business. Good luck to him.

Again, a lot of agents probably say the same things Bentley does - not saying he won't have competition in that regard. But he's at a level that most ex-pros simply never reach, whether or not they made mistakes or wasted their money prior to reforming and trying to help other players see the light. He is an ex-Premiership, ex-Tottenham Hotspur footballer, with the name recognition and contacts those associations get you. He has a history in the game easily verifiable by anyone with an internet connection and a willingness to look for 'Bentley goal 4-4' on Youtube (or, alternately, 'Bentley kicks ball into skip' ). He's been at a range of clubs across his career, from Arsenal in his early days, to Blackburn in his heyday, to Spurs for his final period - where he was further dispatched out on loan to Birmingham, West Ham and FC Rostov in Russia. On top of all that, he was capped by England - seven times, as a matter of fact.

If you're a young player who wants to get far in the game and you're presented with the options of going with Bentley or (say) Dean Windass as your agent, which one are you more likely to pick? Which one is likelier to know people at Spurs, Arsenal and other top-end clubs that would consent to take a dekko at you? Which one is the likelier to know the inns and outs of not just moving around England at the top levels, but moving abroad as well (to Russia, or to Spain)? Which one is the likelier to know the different pressures and temptations that affect young footballers at top clubs versus at clubs a bit further down the chain?

On top of all that, Bentley's spent a couple of years managing some restaurants, apparently - it's probably unlikely that he's completely *devoid* of business acumen, given that fact.

Overall, I'd agree that if Bentley is put up against someone like, say, Gary Neville, and then presented to players as a potential agent, then he's probably out of luck. But he'll probably be appealing to a lot of youngsters or players that aren't looking for an agent *that* successful and connected, but one able to hold his own based on his footballing exploits at the top level. And there, Bentley can point to a record better than 99% of pro footballers in the UK.

With regard to your first post, that's a bit more difficult for me to explain - based more on feelings than arguable positions. I'll return to it in a bit, if I can.

 

[T-C]

Again, a lot of agents probably say the same things Bentley does - not saying he won't have competition in that regard. But he's at a level that most ex-pros simply never reach, whether or not they made mistakes or wasted their money prior to reforming and trying to help other players see the light. He is an ex-Premiership, ex-Tottenham Hotspur footballer, with the name recognition and contacts those associations get you. He has a history in the game easily verifiable by anyone with an internet connection and a willingness to look for 'Bentley goal 4-4' on Youtube (or, alternately, 'Bentley kicks ball into skip' ). He's been at a range of clubs across his career, from Arsenal in his early days, to Blackburn in his heyday, to Spurs for his final period - where he was further dispatched out on loan to Birmingham, West Ham and FC Rostov in Russia. On top of all that, he was capped by England - seven times, as a matter of fact.

If you're a young player who wants to get far in the game and you're presented with the options of going with Bentley or (say) Dean Windass as your agent, which one are you more likely to pick? Which one is likelier to know people at Spurs, Arsenal and other top-end clubs that would consent to take a dekko at you? Which one is the likelier to know the inns and outs of not just moving around England at the top levels, but moving abroad as well (to Russia, or to Spain)? Which one is the likelier to know the different pressures and temptations that affect young footballers at top clubs versus at clubs a bit further down the chain?

On top of all that, Bentley's spent a couple of years managing some restaurants, apparently - it's probably unlikely that he's completely *devoid* of business acumen, given that fact.

Overall, I'd agree that if Bentley is put up against someone like, say, Gary Neville, and then presented to players as a potential agent, then he's probably out of luck. But he'll probably be appealing to a lot of youngsters or players that aren't looking for an agent *that* successful and connected, but one able to hold his own based on his footballing exploits at the top level. And there, Bentley can point to a record better than 99% of pro footballers in the UK.

With regard to your first post, that's a bit more difficult for me to explain - based more on feelings than arguable positions. I'll return to it in a bit, if I can.

I think I was probably a bit harsh suggesting that no young players would want to emulate him! At the end of it all he did play top level football and walked away with financial independence. Who wouldn't take that?!

I just don't see anything about his career in football or since that suggests he would naturally be a good agent for a young player. Based on years in the game and variety of clubs I'd be just as likely to consider Dean Windass. Been around football as a player and coach for a lot longer than Bentley, and has more experience of having to fight to make a career out of the game.

My view is really that you don't need to have played top level football or sport to be a good agent. Get me an experienced sports lawyer who has worked with a few high profile names.

 

[DubaiSpur]

I think I was probably a bit harsh suggesting that no young players would want to emulate him! At the end of it all he did play top level football and walked away with financial independence. Who wouldn't take that?!

I just don't see anything about his career in football or since that suggests he would naturally be a good agent for a young player. Based on years in the game and variety of clubs I'd be just as likely to consider Dean Windass. Been around football as a player and coach for a lot longer than Bentley, and has more experience of having to fight to make a career out of the game.

My view is really that you don't need to have played top level football or sport to be a good agent. Get me an experienced sports lawyer who has worked with a few high profile names.

Well, I would agree that you don't have to be a former senior-level pro to be a good agent (look at Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola and Pini Zahavi for examples), but my point was that there's nothing to suggest that Bentley wouldn't be appealing as an agent to a lot of players in *most* scenarios. He's a better choice than Dean Windass, for example, if you were a youth player who wished to get an agent with connections at the top London clubs, or one with experience of playing in Europe, or playing abroad, and so on. Dean Windass would be good if you're looking for someone willing to tout you around the lower league season, but Bentley probably supersedes him (at least based on evident experience) in the top flight.

As for that highlighted bit, I don't know - that seems like it might backfire if the clubs decide that they don't want someone who is represented by someone outside the conventional circle of ex-pros or people with contacts at the club. Not insurpassable, but more of a consideration than it would be with an equivalently successful ex-pro instead.[/QUOTE]

 

[T-C]

Well, I would agree that you don't have to be a former senior-level pro to be a good agent (look at Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola and Pini Zahavi for examples), but my point was that there's nothing to suggest that Bentley wouldn't be appealing as an agent to a lot of players in *most* scenarios. He's a better choice than Dean Windass, for example, if you were a youth player who wished to get an agent with connections at the top London clubs, or one with experience of playing in Europe, or playing abroad, and so on. Dean Windass would be good if you're looking for someone willing to tout you around the lower league season, but Bentley probably supersedes him (at least based on evident experience) in the top flight.

As for that highlighted bit, I don't know - that seems like it might backfire if the clubs decide that they don't want someone who is represented by someone outside the conventional circle of ex-pros or people with contacts at the club. Not insurpassable, but more of a consideration than it would be with an equivalently successful ex-pro instead.

Obviously these are all hypotheticals, but I'm not convinced that a David Bentley does necessarily have more contacts at top clubs compared to a Dean Windass. I know a couple of guys (not ex pros) who work in non league football who have plenty of contacts in the Premier League at both scouting and exec levels.

My assumption is actually that the majority of agents aren't ex players actually ex players at all, so that 'circle' of people with the contacts and general knowledge of the way the system works isn't as much of a closed shop as it used to be. Which goes back to my point about professionalism opening the industry up.

It's fairly interesting to look at the FAs list of registered intermediaries for recognisable names (...neither Bentley or Windass are on it at the moment )