Darren Bent

[Mazrim]

I maintain that if he fancies it and if used properly, Carroll could be utterly lethal and score bagloads of goals in this league.
Not that I want to lose Bent of course.

[Ad@m]

I maintain that if he fancies it and if used properly, Carroll could be utterly lethal and score bagloads of goals in this league.
Not that I want to lose Bent of course.

But Carroll never has so there is a major IF in your statement.  Bent on the other hand has a proven track record of scoring bagloads of goals in this league.

The suggestion of a straight swap of them is one of the craziest things I've read on the internet in a long time.

[dave.woodhall]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

[Holte L2]

I think it all comes down to how Eck sees us playing in 12- 18 months time. If that is with the current formation, then as unpopular as it would be he will take a big bid for Bent, as it works better with Gabby up top, means we don't have to accommodate Gabby out of position for Bent to play, and probably create more opportunity to get the midfield forward. The down side is that there will be plenty of days where you will be saying, if only we had got Bent in there, he would have knocked that home.

The key for me though is how it is re-invested. If we sell him and have a very clear policy, with a clear plan of who we want, youngish players that have been scouted, and have good prospects but are already ready to play, maybe like the kid being mentioned from Barnsley, or the lad at Huddersfield, then fair enough, try a different direction as at least there would be a visible plan.

Why do we have to "accommodate Gabby"?  Because he's a fans favourite and works hard for the team?  Much as I have a lot of time for Gabby, an on form Albrighton is a better option out wide, and Bent is better at sticking Albrighton type deliveries in the onion bag.  Thus for me there is an argument for saying Gabby should be back up to both, and not an automatic choice.

I'd argue that we recently had one of those days you refer to - against Arsenal where Albrighton and N'zogbia put quite a few balls into the box that were tailor made for Bent, but Gabby didn't get on the end of any of them.

For me the question is Bent or Gabby as the central striker.  Personally I do not think Gabby has the nous to play the wide striker efficiently.  Yes, he has scored some goals there but when he was moved wide late on at Chelsea and again yesterday, tactically he is all at sea.  He spent most of yesterday keeping Cuellar company rather than pressing up on the full back and when our midfield have the ball he does not give them an option he waits till they put it into space and chases it.  Bent, as everyone says, is a six yard poacher so he cannot play wide so that leaves AM with a problem.  IMO it has to be one or the other, maybe play Gabby more away from home when the midfield is perhaps more defensive and he will chase down the channels and play Bent more at home when we should have more of the play and get the ball into the box on a regular basis.

Yesterday we should have started with the same team as at Chelsea and then brought Bent on for Gabby around the hour mark, with Bannan replacing Ireland and maybe Gardner coming on for the last 10 minutes again.
[/quote]

Agree completely about the system.

I do however think we should have rotated the team though. Alot of then looked fucked after the Chelsea game.

I'd have switched Bannan for N'zogbia. Kept Albrighton in.Gardner for Petrov and played Bent. Purely to keep things fresh.

If we played with the same tempo, I don't think we'd have lost yesterday.

[Ad@m]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

Why not?  Not since Yorke have we had a player capable of being at the top of the Premier League's top scorer list.

It's actually been quite difficult for him since he joined, being parachuted in to a club battling relegation, half on the recommendation of the England manager to play with other England players, only for those England players to be sold and the manager who signed you to leave the club too.  The club has been through a lot in 12 months since he joined.

The major challenge to him becoming a legend is his reputation as a bit of a mercenary though.  People expect him to move on if a better offer comes along.  But if he stayed and we played to his strengths then I can see him scoring a lot of goals and just through sheer uniqueness he'd stand a good chance of becoming a legend.

[tarzansbrother]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

Has any of our recent signings? And will any of them again? Big money at other clubs or our current owners policy means any quality will be soon gone.

[ozzjim]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

[Jimmy Smash]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

[Ian.]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

Red

[Jimmy Smash]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

Red

Fuck me. Woody Allen must be shitting himself.

[Dave]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

I'm going to stick my neck out and say "idiots on Twitter".

Christ that medium has a lot to answer for.

[ozzjim]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

Red

Various forums on line, being discussed heavily on twitter and 5 live earlier with Lawro saying there are big rumours it is done.

[dave.woodhall]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

Red

Various forums on line, being discussed heavily on twitter and 5 live earlier with Lawro saying there are big rumours it is done.

Twitter and the internet then.

[Jimmy Smash]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

For 15 games last season yes. Has looked out of place all this.

Rumours of 18 and Carrol on loan for 6 months. 25 and they might strike a deal, although I would want the loan to be 18 months!

Source?

Red

Various forums on line, being discussed heavily on twitter and 5 live earlier with Lawro saying there are big rumours it is done.

Ta

[eamonn]

I'll throw something into the debate here. Has Bent ever felt like a Villa player? Has he ever seemed the sort who would become a legend? 

Yeah, when he scored the winner against Manchester City on his debut.