David Bentley: ‘My 10-year-old son has rekindled my love for football’
When David Bentley called time on his football career at the age of 29, he never imagined he would be missing the game a decade later.
Bentley walked away from football in the summer of 2014, after admitting he had lost his passion for the sport after a career that saw him play for Arsenal, Blackburn and Tottenham while winning seven caps for England at senior international level.
Bentley failed to play a single Premier League game in the final two years of his contract at Tottenham before walking away from football, but he was convinced he made the right decision as he confirmed with his retirement a statement a little over a decade ago.
“I’ve given up football,” said Bentley as he announced his decision to quit before his 30th birthday. “I’ve taken the decision to take my life in a different direction.
“I’ve just had little baby twins, three months old, and I’ve got a little four-year-old and I want to focus on that. My love for the game went a little bit and I didn’t want to carry on just for the fact of paying me money.
“It’s not really ever been an option for me to do that. I’m involved in a restaurant in Spain and we’re bringing it to the UK, so there is a lot of work there.
“I enjoyed every minute of it and had a smile on my face every day but I don’t want to carry on taking my family to a place we really don’t want to be. Life’s too short to do that.”
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Roll the clock forward a decade and Bentley now admits he would relish the chance to be back in a sport that he has rekindled his love for, as he sat down with Planet Football for an exclusive interview.
“I do miss football a bit now, especially over the last 18 months,” Bentley told us.
“I have a ten-year-old son who is obsessed with football and I have started watching matches with him, which has reignited that buzz for football.
“So when I see Tottenham vs Arsenal coming around and the other big games, I’d love to be playing in them, of course.
“When I retired, it was the right decision and I don’t have regrets. I wanted to spend more time with my family and that’s what I’ve done. I got to do something many people dream about, but it was time to call it a day.”
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The most memorable moment of Bentley’s career came in a Spurs jersey in a 2008 North London derby at Emirates Stadium, as he flicked the ball up before unleashing a stunning looping shot that found the back of the net.
It was a goal instantly etched into Tottenham folklore as a classic strike and will always be replayed when the career of this gifted performer is remembered.
The end of Bentley’s sporting journey left many wondering how a player who was so talented could quit the game so soon, but he offers up this explanation.
“When you are on the wave in football and things are going your way, it’s easy to ride it and love every second of it,” he reflected.
“It’s when you fall off the wave, it’s hard to get back on it again. We have seen that across football and it happens quite a lot. That’s the way it can happen and it was the story for me.”
By Kevin Palmer
Part two – including Bentley’s five-a-side team of the best footballers he played with – will be published tomorrow.