David Bentley’s time at Spurs cut short due to ice bucket celebration | OneFootball

David Bentley was on the rise during his time at Tottenham, but suddenly everything changed in his career when he got carried away in celebration.

Bentley claimed that his time at Spurs ended prematurely due to his participation in throwing a bucket of ice water over then-manager Harry Redknapp during an interview with Sky Sports.

Tottenham players were celebrating after defeating Manchester City, a victory that secured them a spot in the Champions League.

“It was just a celebration, I wasn’t trying to make him look silly”, Bentley told the Telegraph.

“He wasn’t happy because he was trying to change his image and I went and chucked water on him.

“He wanted to be like Sir Alex Ferguson.”

The midfielder had 15 Premier League appearances with Redknapp’s side during that season and he was arguably in the prime of his career. But his joke had severe consequences.

“I played loads that year and there was no problem between us, but then that was the end for me,” Bentley said.

In January of 2011, the former England international was sent on loan to Birmingham City. Afterwards, he had loan spells in West Ham, FC Rostov and Blackburn Rovers. He will never return to play for the Spurs, was never again called for international duty, and his momentum faded away fast.

The infamous moment might have not only cost him his time in White Hart Lane. His once promising career ended just a couple of years later, when he retired from professional football at age 29.

However, he sees it differently.

“People are always wondering if I was depressed or something, but I just wanted to do something else,” Bentley claims. “I’m fine. I had a great time.

“I did it the way I wanted. I went for it, got to the top and didn’t stay there for that long. I like that.”

Back in 2011, Redknapp told Absolute Radio that he wasn’t precisely happy with Bentley’s actions.

“It was a bit of fun, but I wasn’t best pleased with it, I’ve got to be honest with you. I just thought it was a bit disrespectful if I’m honest about it, to tell you the absolute truth, you know,” Redknapp admitted.