And for a washed-up ex-England international and ex-Mackem ... what club is best suited?
Several sources suggested last week that the Londoners were out of the running to sign the England man, leaving the Toon seemingly free to complete the deal at their leisure.
However, Bent has a tough decision to make over which side is going to be better for him heading into the new season.
Fulham, under their new ownership, are probably in the best position to be able to offer him a deal which is similar to the one he currently enjoys at Aston Villa.
He’s one of the best paid players at Villa Park and the financial side of things is something that Bent, and any other professional, will factor in when making his decision over where best to move.
In terms of game time and playing style, Fulham would also be able to offer him a lot more support than he may find at Newcastle.
Dimitar Berbatov, Bryan Ruiz and Hugo Rodallega are all superb players in possession and in terms of their creativity in the final third of the pitch, which panders to Bent’s ability as a goal poacher.
However, that could be a weakness and an advantage to the Magpies because should Bent move to St James Park, he’ll more than likely have a better chance of becoming the lead striker at the club.
Papiss Cisse has done himself no favours this summer refusing to go to Portugal and refusing to wear the shirt, put telling Alan Pardew (through his agent) "Play me on the wing again and I´m off!"
Newcastle fans would give him the chance to prove himself at the club ... but a bad start and his Sunderland past will catch up on him.
Bent’s recent time at Villa has been frustrating because the club don´t rate him.
He is not the in-demand player he once was.
Source: Manchester City MAD
Source: FOOTYMAD
