If there ever was an example of a player massively underachieving following a big money move, David Bentley is probably it. However, despite his struggles at Whie Hart Lane, the former Arsenal winger has insisted that Andre Villas-Boas is the right man for the job and says that he has a lot of respect for him.

Bentley arrived at Spurs in a deal that could be worth £17m from Blackburn and even though he had forged a very good reputation prior to the switch, his career at White Hart Lane has never been successful. He may have been part of the squad that reached the Champions League in 2010, yet that is his biggest claim to fame and few fans would disagree that he has been one big let-down. Many people are under the assumption that Bentley’s time at Spurs is well and truly over, especially as his contract expires at the end of the current campaign. For the time being, he is on loan with Russian outfit FC Rostov and appears to be enjoying much more time on the field.

Even though Andre Villas-Boas was the man who allowed him to leave the club, Bentley appears quite complimentary about the ex-Chelsea boss. He said, “I respect Villas-Boas for taking the Spurs job. He had a tough time at Chelsea and Harry [Redknapp] was always a difficult act to follow. But I think it might happen for them this year.”

However, while Bentley may be full of praise for AVB, he does not look back on Harry Redknapp fondly. He claims that it was emphatic celebrations following the Champions League qualification that riled Redknapp as he said, “He never said anything to my face about it – he didn’t really ever say much to me at all – but I knew I was always up against it after that.”