Throughout his career Darren Bent has been renowned for his goal scoring ability. Many will argue being a striker that scoring goals is his primary function. However, as the former Ipswich forward is out of action for three months, perhaps now is the time to question how much Bent really offers to a team.
He does not possess a particularly high work rate. It is not necessary in football although it is an endearing characteristic to English supporters. Bent is more prepared to wait for the chances to arrive and with this comes the expectation he’ll be ruthless when they do appear. The striker offers little when it comes to build-up play but Bent is forgiven as long as he scores goals – something he’s done regularly.
The Aston Villa striker has 100 Premier League goals which is an impressive achievement. He is capable of the sublime in the final third as his finish at the Emirates proved just over a month ago. Bent’s never been too far away from the ridiculous though. Having missed a seemingly easy chance for Spurs in 2009, Harry Redknapp famously lambasted Bent saying he thought his wife could have scored.
How receptive the striker is to criticism has been something else open to debate but Redknapp’s comments were certainly harsh. It wasn’t too surprising when Bent subsequently moved on to Sunderland, one of four Premier League clubs he’s played for.
Whilst he has achieved plenty of personal success with those he’s plied his trade with in the top flight, teams with Darren Bent in them have struggled to achieve much. The average Premier League finish for a side containing the striker is 12th. Furthermore, he has only ever achieved two top half finishes in his career.
[ad_pod id='dfp-mpu' align='right']
The closest Bent has come to success was when he was an unused substitute in Spurs 2008 Carling Cup victory over Chelsea. He started in the final the following year but Manchester United came up trumps in the penalty shoot out.
Since then he hasn’t come any nearer, so perhaps there’s something deeper afoot. Let’s compare him to the striker expected to deputise in his absence - Emile Heskey. He may be the bane of many football supporters jokes but don’t be deceived as Heskey is a fine player. What many fail to appreciate is how much he gives to the team, something Gerard Houllier tried to emphasise in his time at Liverpool, labelling him extremely influential and instrumental to the success enjoyed at the club in the early part of the 21st Century.
Glance at what Heskey has won in his career and it dwarfs Bent’s solitary Carling Cup success. The former England striker has been victorious in the League Cup four times whilst he has won the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup once. Add to that a Charity Shield and a UEFA Super Cup and Heskey will be able to look back on some career when he retires.
Bent is still a long way from thinking about retirement but he is coming to the point in his career where he’ll want to win something more substantial than a League Cup. As Emile Heskey has proved, goals are not everything for a striker even though he has also passed the 100 goal mark in the Premier League. Too many in the game only appreciate the goals and not what a player offers in his all round game.
Add up what has been paid for Darren Bent throughout his career and the figure nearly reaches £50 million. Clearly clubs value the goals column very highly. Villa paid £24 million for Bent last January whilst the total sum of fees for Emile Heskey comes to just £2 million more.
The case of Darren Bent then illustrates how deceiving statistics can be sometimes. It also highlights how many don’t appreciate the subtler side of football – i.e. those who don’t score the goals. Bent is yet to play for one of England’s elite in his career and although time is running out, he’ll need to add more to his game before it happens.
Article originally written @ Gone With The Rhind