Tuesday Transfer Talk and FA Cup Wrap

Bent Deal Done

In one of the shocks of the current transfer season, Darren Bent is headed to Aston Villa for an up to £25M when all is said and done (Villa will play close to 18M up front).

I analyzed this deal extensively in last night's blog. But it really is a big move for both clubs.

Perhaps the firepower up front from Bent will provide a much-needed shot in the arm for Gerard Houllier's team. But any dreams of Europe would appear far-fetched considering their current position in the table.

The loss of Bent is huge for Sunderland, as it takes away a proven goalscorer from a young and vibrant team that continually shows themselves to be drastically underrated. Gyan/Welbeck is a promsing force up front even without Bent, Jordan Henderson is an extremely promising youngster on the wing, and the defense is top 5 in goals against.

Meanwhile, Sunderland manager Steve Bruce is none too happy with the sudden move of his leading goalscorer, saying that he was not the same player over past weeks and that he has let the club down.

The Black Cats got another bit of bad news regarding Man U loanee Danny Welbeck. Welbeck missed the Tyneside Derby with Newcastle thanks to a hamstring injury, and now the club plans to administer exploratory surgery on the youngster's knee, which apparently has been paining him for some time now.

If the Welbeck injury is a serious one, it could spell disaster combined with Bent's departure. Frazier Campbell is out with a long term knee injury as well, and that means Gyan is the only fit striker for the Black Cats for this weekend's clash at Blackpool.

Bruce and company will likely have to act quick in the transfer market. Otherwise goals may be hard to come by for the rest of the season.

More Transfer Talk

Meanwhile, Steven Pienaar was in London for a physical, hoping to finalize his move to Tottenham.

Harry Redknapp is hoping that the signing will pay immediate dividends. And he is prepared to announce him in the squad as early as this weekend.


I'm not sure how this move works for Tottenham. They have been so active in the transfer market of late that it feels like they are buying players just for the hell of it.

Where will a winger/attacking mid like Pienaar fit in? Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon have been fixtures on the flanks, and do-it-all midfielder Luca Modric plays the attacking central role. Pienaar won't be seeing much time at center forward either with Rafael van der Vaart in that spot.

Maybe this signals a possible transfer of Modric in the summer (whom several clubs has been linked with). But what do I know?

For my money, Spurs need help in the back. Instead they have bolstered an already strong midfield with a player that will have to fight for minutes. And they're going to have to pay him a ton of money to do so.

Tottenham are a side of great quality and potential, but they aren't Chelsea or Man City, so they need to be careful and make sure their buys are wise ones. With van der Vaart and Pienaar adding to an increasing wage bill, Tottenham could find themselves in a bit of financial bother should they fail to qualify for the Champions League.

There's one more transfer story to report, and it involves Ryan Babel of Liverpool. The young Dutchman came to Anfield amidst a ton of high hopes, but struggled to crack the starting lineup during his time as a Red.

Now he's headed to Germany to play for Hoffenheim.

Let's remember that depite their struggles and lack of big time purchases, 'Pool have still spent a ton of money on transfers since last summer (with a ton of average buys of unproven player). This at least makes a little bit of that money back.

It's also a nice move for Hoffenheim. The Bundesliga club appear to be on the verge of losing star goalscorer Demba Ba. Babel would be a nice replacement if he can re-discover the form of his younger years.

From the FA Cup

Manchester City 4-2 Leicester City

15'- Tevez
19'- Gallagher (PK)
37'- Viera
38'- Johnson
58'- Tevez (MISSED PK)
83'- Dyer
90'- Kolarov

Roberto Mancini's side held off a stubborn Leicester City side at Eastlands, advancing to the fourth round of the cup in the process.

Carlos Tevez opened up the scoring in the 15th minute. He controlled a throw-in, got a bit of fortune when the ball bounced off a defender and back off of him to send him to the races. But his finish was sublime, as he ferociously blistered the ball high to the far post.

Less than five minutes later, Lloyd Dyer split a defender and Patrick Viera in the box, and won a penalty when Viera stuck his leg out to clip the Leicester striker. Paul Gallagher boldly struck his penalty right up the middle for the lead.

City were back in the lead in the 37th.

A beautiful cross-field ball from Tevez hit Adam Johnson to the right of the goal but inside the box. The winger cleverly set up David Silva, whose low strike beat Chris Weale but was cleared off the line by Sol Bamba. But the ball fell to Viera with the goal at his mercy and he finished easily.

The Foxes defense was looking increasingly uneasy. And their lack of composure hurt them just moments later. A surgical through-pass from Silva to Johnson beat the defense, and the Englishman took one touch and finished nicely with his preferred left foot.

City appeared to be running away with the match in the second 45. Carlos Tevez gave the side a chance to do so in the 57th. He was released down the right half, and faked inside to set up a shot in the box, and an off-balance Jack Hobbs clipped his foot for a penalty.

Tevez missed his first PK in English football earlier this month. He missed his second when Weale made a nice kick save as he tried to strike up the middle.

The save brought LCFC back into the match. And they enjoyed a nice spell of possession afterward.

Their persistence was rewarded in the 83rd, when the speed of Dyer beat Joleon Lescott to a long through ball in the box (although he appeared to be a half step offside). He controlled nicely, and finished calmly.

Sven Goran Erickson's side threw everything forward in an attempt to score a shock equalizer. But it was City who would score the game's final goal.

A nice counter in injury time from Man City saw Kolarov with space from distance. He made no mistake with his powerful left foot, sending a beautiful low strike across goal and into the corner.

City will face Notts Co. in the next round.

Other Results

Stoke City 2-0 Cardiff City (AET)
92'- Walters
115'- Walters

Wolves 5-0 Doncaster
5'- Fletcher
61'- Bia
66'- Doyle
74'- Jarvis
90'- Jones