“The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.” – Confutius

Using this quote as a yardstick, David Bentley has a long, long way to go before he can be considered in any way superior. For the former Arsenal trainee, the above quote would apply in reverse – he is modest in his actions, but exceeds in his speech. Bentley has seemingly set off on a mission to become one of the least likeable characters in English football.

He has become one of the biggest symbols of the coincidentally named “Baby Bentley Brigade”, a player who took  in the fame and the wages and let it all go to his head. He believed his own hype. After a couple of good years at Blackburn Rovers, Bentley earned his dream, big-money move to Tottenham Hotspur, and when he got there he thought he had made it. Literally speaking he may have. Figuratively, it was the only the beginning.

The Spurs man has had it far from easy at White Hart Lane since his £17 million transfer in the summer of 2008. Unable to displace Aaron Lennon on the right wing he spent most of his time marooned out on the left, if he was even selected. His performances were, on the whole, unconvincing and flaky, full of style over substance.

Off the pitch, Bentley has made headlines for all the wrong reasons. He was often spotted out and about sampling London’s bountiful nightlife in the early morning, infamously wrapping his car around a lamp post in August whilst under the influence.

The reason for his late night partying? He was on scouting missions, looking to sign up new musical acts for his night club in Marbella. The actions, some might say, of a man who believed he’d arrived. A man too caught up in his own status to care about what it was that earned him that status in the 1^st place.

But, whisper it very quietly, there’s a  slight chance that the Peterborough-born playmaker is returning to form.  Dare I ask, is there a chance he could force his way into the England set-up?

Bentley would tell you there is, he has always possessed monumental self-belief. He famously dropped out of England’s Under 21 squad before the European Championships in 2007, because he wanted to save himself for the seniors in Euro 2008. He wasn’t even in the senior squad at the time. After a wonder goal at Arsenal in the League Cup in 2008, Bentley compared himself to Superman.

At Blackburn Rovers, manager Mark Hughes helped him channel that self-belief and keep it in check before it crossed that line to become arrogance. His last three performances for Tottenham, against Fulham, Birmingham and Leeds, were reminiscent of Blackburn’s confident and effervescent David Bentley. It was all there, the excellent close control, the pin-point crosses and set-pieces, and passing as slick as his Brylcreemed haircut.

Of course, Fulham, Birmingham and Leeds are no great shakes, but the most important element of Bentley’s performances was his attitude. In all three games he was working hard for his team mates. With the ball he was a menace, looking to commit the full-backs and whip in teasing crosses, or to cut in and look to split open defences with an intricate pass. Without the ball, he was quick to get back into position to do his defensive duties. In short, he looks to be enjoying his football again.

Bentley’s detractors would laugh at the thought of him getting an England call-up. It is definitely a long shot, but maybe not as outlandish as they would have you believe.  Of his rivals for the position on the right of England’s midfield, Aaron Lennon could be sidelined through injury until April and Theo Walcott is out of form. Shaun Wright-Philips has consistently failed to impress on the international stage and David Beckham has still to prove to Fabio Capello that his legs will carry him to South Africa.

Also, the fact that Joe Cole has yet to cement his place in the Chelsea starting line-up means there could be a lack of players capable of relieving the creative burden that rests upon Wayne Rooney’s shoulders. Bentley is one of those players. At his best he is calm and assured in possession, capable of putting his foot on the ball and probing opponents, picking away at any loose threads that might unravel tight defences. There are few English players of his ilk.

In the final reckoning it will come down to the form and fitness of the players mentioned above. But if Bentley keeps his head down and continues working hard like he has in his last 3 games, he could make a very strong case for a call-up.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 4th, 2010 and is filed under England, Europe. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.