Why Rangers must avoid signing Darren Bent for free
Former Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa striker Darren Bent recently expressed a strong desire to join Scottish giants Rangers (h/t talkSPORT).
The 34-year-old forward is a free agent after being released by Derby County in the summer. And speaking on talkSPORT, the Englishman revealed his interest in joining Steven Gerrard’s side. When asked if he would be keen on heading north of the border to sign for Rangers, the 34-year-old said:
“100 per cent! You’re talking about one of the biggest clubs in football in Rangers. To get the opportunity to go up there and play – definitely!”
Bent, a prolific goal-scorer in England once upon a time, has a total of 106 goals in 277 English Premier League appearances, having turned out for the likes of Charlton Athletic, Tottenham Hotspur, Sunderland and Aston Villa.
The striker joined Derby in January 2015 from Villa, initially on loan, before moving to Pride Park on a permanent basis in the subsequent summer. He went on to make 86 appearances for the Rams, scoring 28 goals in the process and setting up four more.
In January this year, the Englishman joined Burton Albion on loan for the rest of the 2017/18 season but failed to make an impact, scoring just two goals in 15 matches as the Brewers ending up getting relegated from the Championship.
Having returned to Derby at the end of the season, the club released him following the expiry of his contract and he has since been training with Burton Albion, where he has been offered a pay-as-you-play deal by manager Nigel Clough (h/t talkSPORT).
Rangers have made a solid start to life under new manager Steven Gerrard. The Light Blues sit fourth in the Scottish Premiership table with eight points from five matches, while also advancing to the quarter-finals of the Scottish League Cup and qualifying to the group stages of the UEFA Europa League. So far, under the former Liverpool captain, the Gers have lost just one game in all competitions.
The Glasgow-based outfit had an eventful summer transfer window that saw them make as many as fifteen new signings. The Gers reinforced their centre-forward department by signing Northern Irishman Kyle Lafferty, along with procuring Umar Sadiq on loan from AS Roma, to complement last season’s breakout star, Alfredo Morelos.
Rangers’ attack is faring quite, having scored 10 goals so far in the league – the second-highest in the competition behind league leaders Hearts (11) and five more than reigning champions Celtic. Although Sadiq is yet to get off the mark for the season, Morelos has already bagged six goals in all competitions and Lafferty has found the back of the net twice in four appearances.
Considering that the Gers’ attack is doing well so far, adding Bent to the club seems unnecessary at the moment. The 34-year-old may have been a prolific striker during his day but he is clearly past his prime now, evidenced by the fact that he scored just two goals last season.
Bringing him in would also send a wrong message to Umar Sadiq. The on-loan striker is yet to make an impression since moving to Ibrox but his potential and talents were on display during his loan spell with NAC Breda the last term. Signing Bent would push the 21-year-old further down the pecking order and hurt the youngster’s confidence.
Moreover, Rangers haven’t had the best experience with signing seasoned pros on big contracts in recent times. The likes of Joey Barton, Philippe Senderos and, more recently, Bruno Alves, have all failed to make an impact at Ibrox and Bent is also likely to go down the same path. Hence, the Gers must avoid signing him.
