PLAYER PROFILE

David Bentley

Position: Midfield

Height: 5'9

Weight: 10st 9lbs

Date of Birth: 1984-08-27 Peterborough, England

David Bentley

Blackburn manager Mark Hughes secured the permanent signing of Arsenal midfielder David Bentley on transfer deadline day in January 2006, after the player had spent the first half of the 2005/06 season on loan.

Bentley spent last season on loan at Norwich City and scored twice in 26 Premiership appearances for the Canaries.

He came up through the youth team ranks at Highbury and has made nine appearances for the Gunners, although only one of those games has been in the Premiership.

But after impressing during his loan period at Ewood Park, boss Mark Hughes decided to make the striker's stay permanent.

And it proved to be a wise move as, in his first full season with the club, Bentley made 51 appearances, scoring seven goals along the way.

He continued this fine form in 2007/08 and managed to stake a claim to a place in the England squad. This attracted the interest of a number of clubs, and in July 2008 he signed for Tottenham Hotspur.