Source: Daily_Mail
Darren Bent heads for Sunderland talks as Spurs prepare to sell striker
Harry Redknapp finally got his man when Peter Crouch joined Tottenham from cash-strapped Portsmouth in a £9million transfer.
The deal represented excellent business for Spurs boss Redknapp because Sunderland last week agreed to pay £12m, only for the England striker to reject the move.
And the Crouch deal was not the only piece of good business by astute Redknapp yesterday.
Darren Bent stepped off Tottenham's plane to China shortly before take-off on Monday after his move to Sunderland was revived in dramatic fashion.
Bent was already in his seat when the call came to stay behind, and the team's departure for Beijing was held up for 20 minutes whlle his luggage was removed.
The striker had been cleared earlier in the day to join his team-mates for the Asia Trophy when Sunderland pulled out of the deal, unhappy over Tottenham's refusal to budge over their asking price.
Spurs wanted to at least recoup the £16.5million they paid Charlton for Bent in 2007. But he was told the deal was back on after Sunderland came back at the last minute with a £14m offer, which includes an initial £9m fee plus add-ons.
Tottenham are keen to push a deal through to cover their own purchases, not least the £9m deal for Portsmouth's Peter Crouch, which went through on Monday night. However, the England striker did not join Tottenham's flight to China due to visa complications.
Crouch's arrival will raise more questions over Robbie Keane's future 12 months after he left to join Liverpool in a £19m transfer that was meant to signal the most exciting phase of his career.
Returning to White Hart Lane in January after a demoralising spell at Anfield, and forgiven by Tottenham fans for his brief defection to Merseyside, Keane's future looked mapped out at the club where he has spent much of his career.
However, Redknapp's decision to reunite Jermain Defoe and Crouch, a partnership he first brought together at Portsmouth, raises questions over Keane's role.
Even if Redknapp succeeds in offloading Bent and finds a buyer for Roman Pavlyuchenko, who cost £13.8m last year, it is likely he will use the money to try to sign Klaas-Jan Huntelaar from Real Madrid.
With Crouch, Defoe and Huntelaar to choose from, Keane is in danger of slipping even further down the pecking order.
And after playing for six different teams in his 12-year senior career, the Republic of Ireland man might want to move on yet again.
