For
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3.
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5.
6.
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11.
12.
15.
17.
23.
24.
Against
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The Checklist
(The origins of these clues can be found here)
1. Is he English?
2. Is he currently married?
3. Has he played under at least 4 managers?
4. Has he had a transfer between 2 Premiership clubs?
5. Was he a Premier League player in January 2011?
6. Has he played with a group of French players at one club?
7. Has he played with a striker who refused to move unless the pass went exactly where he wanted it?
8. Did he play for one manager for a considerable amount of time who was great before losing it?
9. Has he played for a manager who lost the dressing room?
10. Does he have a friend who plays for Liverpool?
11. Might he think Harry Redknapp is the Messiah?
12. Has he appeared as a pundit? (TSF probably doesn’t do so)
13. Did he have a long term girlfriend as a younger player?
14. Had/has a strong father figure.
15. Not an Arsenal or Man City player (at end of 2010-11 season).
16. Did he play a match at some point towards the end of March or first few days of April 2011?
17. Not a keeper.
18. Has a daughter.19. He played with Paolo Di Canio –removed by public demand 20. Someone who’s got a chat about ‘another season’ coming up -see revealing tweet post
21. He’s been involved in a last day relegation battle
22. He’s played for a newly promoted Premier League club
23. Has been subject to a deadline day transfer
24. TSF is Caucasian
25. Has a good friend who is African and has played for a team in Russia
26. Has been diagnosed with depression
27. Played in the lower leagues at start of career
28. Played against Liverpool for a lower league club
29. Was one of the best players in a very successful team
30. Played for a club that got themselves in financial trouble
31. Plays the Paul Scholes role
32. Played under a captain who will go down as one of most successful in the club’s history, without having earned it
33. Played under a stand-in captain wearing a large tubi-grip with a marker pen-written ‘C’ as captain’s armband
34. Has played as captain
35. Has played for a club who promoted their assistant manager to manager (and went on to get bad results)
36. Not a Liverpool fan
37. Played in a team that won promotion to the Premiership
38. Following on from clue 21: That team got relegated due to a goal going in at the other end of the country in the dying minutes of the final game of the season
39. Clue 38 was his last game for that club
40. His wage at the time of clues 38 and 39 was the best part of £100,000 per month
41. He went on to play in the Premiership again after the relegation in clue 38
17 responses to “David Bentley”
It is David Bentley I am sure of it!!
Definately Bentley! Also add 26 – http://footballblog.co.uk/tottenhams-bentley-sight-mind-fc-rostov.html (depression)
And also the clue about him not living up to a large transfer fee? £15mil from Blackburn to Spurs
In the book he refers clearly to Arsenal moving from Highbury and players buying apartments. He is the only English signing by Arsenal at that time. He was player of the year at Blackburn. Played for Spurs and West Ham. Cannot be Danny Murphy!
Pretty obvious it’s David Bentley if you think about it…
Not after his denial yesterday that he’s ever played professionally abroad
David Bentley played abroad. He was on loan at FC Rostov in Russia and made 7 appearences there. He played there last season but now he’s back at Blackburn.
David Bentley usually plays as a winger but he can also play as second striker or central midfield like Paul Scholes does. (refering to clue 31)
Is it just a coincidence that Bentley wrote an Observer piece under the headline “The secret life of a footballer” back in 2008?
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2008/apr/06/football.comment3
Having just rabidly digested the great book, and read all this, strikes me that some subtle changes to real events have been made in order to conceal the identity, but without changing the bigger story or point. Otherwise the clues would be too specific and lead all too readily to the player and this site would have long cracked who it is E.g., the Rooney two footed tackle on a “right back” could have been a player in a different position; the “50p” that hit a player could have been the 50p that hit ref Phil Sharp when Villa played Spurs; he might have two sons, rather than son and daughter. I am erring on thinking that TSF is three players – David Bentley, Dave Kitson and Danny Murphy – who have created a melting point of stories out of which TSF is a morphed pseudo real pro of them all. There are also too many experiences for any single pro. Key points resonate strongly with each but equally none of these players, individually, tick all the boxes. E.g. Kitson has not “won everything” nor would he have reason to lament his small frame as per the start of the book. Murphy has not played in Russia. Bentley isn’t married nor did he emerge through the lower leagues etc.
You can add the following about Bentley:
13. His girlfriend and mother of his daughter in the interview below says that she was 13 (and he was around 16-17)so they know each other for around 14 years now
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/local-news/birmingham-city-david-bentleys-girlfriend-223486
16 He was a substitute in 2 Birmingham City games with Wigan on 19/3/2011 and Bolton on 2/4/2011
18 can also be added from the interview at 13 that he has a daughter
21 Birmingham City was relegated in the last day of 2010-11 while Bentley was their player, though he was not in the squad. He was however in the field for Norwich in the last day of the 2004-2005 season when the team was relegated after a 6-0 defeat by Fulham despite going into the match as favorites to stay up.
22 Norwich were newly promoted when he played for them
29 He was one of the stars of Mark Hughes’ Blackburn that achieved a 7h place and an FA cup semi final
defo David Bentley….Dave Kitson a smoke screen
1. Is he English?
yes
2. Is he currently married?
yes
3. Has he played under at least 4 managers?
yes
4. Has he had a transfer between 2 Premiership clubs?
yes
5. Was he a Premier League player in January 2011?
Yes – Birmingham
6. Has he played with a group of French players at one club?
Yes – arsenal
7. Has he played with a striker who refused to move unless the pass went exactly where he wanted it?
Yes – berbatov
8. Did he play for one manager for a considerable amount of time who was great before losing it?
Wenger
9. Has he played for a manager who lost the dressing room?
Alex McLeash – 2011
10. Does he have a friend who plays for Liverpool?
Glen Johnson
11. Might he think Harry Redknapp is the Messiah?
Can’t confirm
12. Has he appeared as a pundit? (TSF probably doesn’t do so)
Can’t confirm
13. Did he have a long term girlfriend as a younger player?
yes
14. Had/has a strong father figure.
Mark hughes
15. Not an Arsenal or Man City player (at end of 2010-11 season).
No
16. Did he play a match at some point towards the end of March or first few days of April 2011?
Yes
09/03 – injured after 8 minutes at Everton
19/03 – used sub
02/4/11 – returned as substitute for Birmingham v Bolton
17. Not a keeper.
No
18. Has a daughter.
Yes
19. He played with Paolo Di Canio -removed by public demand
20. Someone who’s got a chat about ‘another season’ coming up -see revealing tweet post
21. He’s been involved in a last day relegation battle
Yes – Norwich- 04/05 season
22. He’s played for a newly promoted Premier League club
Yes – Norwich
23. Has been subject to a deadline day transfer
yes
24. TSF is Caucasian
Yes
25. Has a good friend who is African and has played for a team in Russia
Yes David played in Russia
el hadji diouf nearly signed for anzi makachkala to play with Eto’o
26. Has been diagnosed with depression
Yes 2005 gabbling habits
27. Played in the lower leagues at start of career
Yes – Norwich
28. Played against Liverpool for a lower league club
?
29. Was one of the best players in a very successful team
Yes = Blackburn (1st spell)
30. Played for a club that got themselves in financial trouble
Blackburn (2nd spell)
31. Plays the Paul Scholes role
Short/long range passer
32. Played under a captain who will go down as one of most successful in the club’s history, without having earned it
Henry?
33. Played under a stand-in captain wearing a large tubi-grip with a marker pen-written ‘C’ as captain’s armband
?
34. Has played as captain
Yes – England under 18’s
35. Has played for a club who promoted their assistant manager to manager (and went on to get bad results)
19/03/2013 – Gary Bowyer
36. Not a Liverpool fan
No
37. Played in a team that won promotion to the Premiership
Norwich – 03/04
38. Following on from clue 21: That team got relegated due to a goal going in at the other end of the country in the dying minutes of the final game of the season
Yes
Birmingham 2011 lost to Fulham as Wolves won at Blackburn
39. Clue 38 was his last game for that club #
Yes – he returned to Tottenham
?
40. His wage at the time of clues 38 and 39 was the best part of £100,000 per month
I would guess so…
41. He went on to play in the Premiership again after the relegation in clue 38
He went back to Tottenham being named in the 25 man squad from Feb 2012 but he did not play.
I think DB is the Secret Player, not the Secret Footballer.
Its David Bentley. 99% sure of it. He started off in non league at a club called Wormley FC.
I also think the WAG in Dubai could possibly be Peter Crouch’s wife.
Bentley scored from 43 yards. TSF describes scoring from long distance.
On this interview on youtube where he is in a oub he sheepishly looks at the camera affer he says he missed a bus, i think he may of realised people might know that he goes on about missing the tram bus in the book what goes in tour!!
https://youtu.be/JnkwXXgOnkY
Can’t be him. TSF talks about people saying he could have been in the premiership for ten years but wasn’t. Bentley spent most of his career in the prem. he also talks about playing lower and lower on the way back down before retiring, Bentley retired at 29 and records show that he finished at Blackburn in the championship.