Bentley looks to ride Villas-Boas wave

Spurs midfielder David Bentley is looking to take advantage of a ‘clean slate after the appointment of Andre Villas Boas at White Hart Lane.

The former Arsenal and Blackburn man has seen his star fall somewhat after his move to north London, with a combination of injuries and the arrival of Harry Redknapp preventing him making an impression.

The additions of Rafael van der Vaart and Sandro to the Spurs midfield meant that Bentley slipped further down the pecking order.

But the winger is determined to take advantage of the fresh start offered to him by new Tottenham manager, Villas-Boas.

Bentley told The People: “With the new manager, the new era, the new training ground, hopefully I can be a new player, with a new attitude and a new way of doing things.

“This is a chance for me to get back on the good wave now and, if I can be a part of it, that’d be great.

“I’ve already spoken to the manager and he just said: ‘You’ve got a clean slate, so do what you can do and try to impress’.”

Bentley accepts that his lack of opportunities at White Hart Lane are largely down to his own mistakes, but claims other factors also inhibited his progression.

He added: “A lot of people will say I’ve not made the most of my talent and I feel the same.

“When I moved to Tottenham, I was in Fabio Capello’s squad and should have kicked on, but it was a difficult time.

“Within eight games of coming in, the manager who signed me, Juande Ramos, was sacked, and then it just snowballed and got out of control and I never could get that second chance again.”

The 27-year-old admits that times have been difficult for him in recent years, but with the arrival of Villas-Boas, is looking to kickstart his career again.

“I’d had so long riding a wave that was good and then I came off and was riding a wave that was bad, and I could never get myself back on top.

“It has been hard, but hopefully now I can just get back and crack on.”