A former Premier League icon has recalled his encounter with Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand of Manchester United
A former Premier League star has spoken about an encounter with ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand(Image: Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)
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David Bentley has claimed his memorable hat-trick against Manchester United sparked a nightclub encounter with Rio Ferdinand. The 41-year-old was instrumental for Blackburn Rovers in a 4-3 victory over United at Ewood Park in February 2006.
The former Arsenal prospect had begun the campaign on loan at Blackburn under Mark Hughes. The then-21-year-old made his transfer permanent during the January window, completing the move just before facing United.
Rovers surged to a 3-1 lead in the opening 45 minutes. Bentley broke the deadlock by converting a rebound from a free-kick and later restored his team's lead by capitalising on Ferdinand's misjudged header following a mix-up with goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar. Lucas Neill's spot-kick completed the first-half scoring.
After the interval, Bentley demonstrated his talent with a swerving half-volley into the far corner. Despite Ruud van Nistelrooy grabbing two goals, Sir Alex Ferguson's men couldn't rescue a draw, with a red card for Ferdinand adding to their woes. Bentley claims a joke he made at Ferdinand's expense after the match later led to a nightclub confrontation.
"It was Rio, wasn't it, I said something. You know what, there's a story about that. So Rio headed it on to Van Der Sar and I nipped in," Bentley told Clutch 9 Powered by Betway.
"My agent Rob Segal, he'd set up a Sky interview for the day after. That's what they do, don't they, get you out there. I'd said a joke about Rio but he got the right hump! Me and him had a little bit of a square up in a nightclub in Manchester over it.
"He didn't like it because he thought I'd disrespected him. I went, 'I just want to say thanks to Rio, nice little flick-on.' He got the hump. Everyone used to be in this same nightclub and he came up and we had a little bit of a dance around for a bit."
Astonishingly, that hat-trick proved to be Bentley's only league goals for the entire campaign, yet he remained instrumental as Blackburn secured sixth place and qualification for the UEFA Cup. United, meanwhile, finished runners-up to Chelsea, trailing Jose Mourinho's side by eight points.
David Bentley celebrates scoring for Blackburn Rovers
David Bentley scored a hat-trick against Manchester United the day after signing permanently for Blackburn Rovers(Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
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The winger was impressive for Blackburn across the following two seasons. England manager Steve McClaren dubbed Bentley the "new David Beckham", though the Rovers star had to wait for his senior international bow after controversially pulling out of U21 duty.
Consequently, Bentley faced jeers from sections of the England support when he earned his first cap as a substitute against Israel. Yet, it was Ferdinand who stepped up to defend the winger.
"We had such a good performance and everyone was quite happy but what happened with David left a bad taste in the mouth," Ferdinand said. "The lad is on England duty and you don't expect him to get booed, no matter what has happened in the past.
Rio Ferdinand and David Bentley during an England kit launch
Ferdinand and Bentley later became England teammates(Image: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
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"In some quarters, people might say what he did in the summer was a wrong decision but in hindsight, it is easy to say that. He is a young lad, on a learning curve, making his seniors debut for England and he did not deserve to be booed."
Bentley secured a high-profile switch to Tottenham Hotspur in 2008 but struggled to replicate his previous form in north London, ultimately being displaced by Aaron Lennon. The seven-cap England international subsequently had temporary spells at various clubs, including Birmingham City, West Ham United and Russian side Rostov.
He returned briefly to Rovers during the 2012/13 campaign, making seven appearances for the Championship outfit. Bentley was released by Spurs at the end of that season and announced his retirement a year later, aged 29.
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