David Bentley

Arsenal

Born in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, Bentley grew up supporting Manchester United. Bentley started his youth career at Wormley Youth Football Club in Wormley, Hertfordshire, before moving to Arsenal aged 13 as a striker, occasionally playing in the hole. He was used primarily in midfield, usually as a wide midfielder. As a 16-year-old he trained with the Arsenal senior squad, before signing his first professional contract in September 2001. By January 2003, he was handed his first-team debut, coming on as a substitute for Kolo Touré in the 77th minute of a 2–0 FA Cup third round win over Oxford United. Bentley's first and only goal for Arsenal was a chip shot from the edge of the penalty area over goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, in a 4–1 FA Cup win over Middlesbrough on 24 January 2004. He played once in the league for Arsenal, starting a 1–1 draw against Portsmouth on 4 May 2004, in which he was substituted after 61 minutes for Nwankwo Kanu. Bentley spent the whole of the next league season on loan to Norwich City, playing 26 league matches and scoring two goals, against Newcastle and Southampton. His season at Carrow Road was interrupted by a knee injury sustained in January. He returned to the team in April 2005, coming off the bench against Manchester United and playing a key role in Norwich's 2–0 win. Despite a late run of form, the Canaries were relegated from the Premier League on the last day of the season after a 6–0 defeat away to Fulham. Bentley…

Bentley played for the England under-15 and under-16 teams, captained the England under-18 team and played for the England under-21 team. He recorded eight caps and four goals with the under-21 team, He was the first Englishman to score at the new Wembley Stadium in a match against the Italy under-21 team on 24 March 2007. In May 2007, following an impressive 2006–07 season for Blackburn, Bentley was called up for the England B international at Turf Moor for a match against Albania. After naming him as a starter, England manager Steve McClaren said Bentley had the potential to become England's "new David Beckham". In that match, Bentley provided the cross for Stewart Downing's first goal and was involved in the buildup to Downing's second in the 3–1 victory for England. He received the man of the match award for his performance. The next day, he was named in McClaren's 26-man full England squad for the friendly match against Brazil and the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Estonia. In June 2007, Bentley was called up to the England under-21 squad for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in the Netherlands. However, he pulled out of the squad citing fatigue, and England under-21 manager Stuart Pearce questioned the midfielder's commitment to the national squad. This withdrawal led to Bentley being excluded from the senior England squad for the friendly against Germany, but he was selected for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers against Israel and Russia. He made his senior…

Most often Bentley played as a right winger, but he could also play as a central midfielder or a second striker. When at Arsenal, Bentley was stated to play in the second striker role.

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International