CITY & RIDSDALE EMBARRASSED YET AGAIN AS BENT TAKES IT UP THE BRUM!

When Peter Ridsdale sanctioned an official website announcement last Saturday evening stating that Marcus Bent - and I quote - "has SIGNED for the Bluebirds pending a medical on Monday" - I bet I wasn't the only one thinking it was premature and had a sneaky feeling Bent would snub us.

Sadly, that's how it has turned out.

In hindsight, the suspicion is rife that Peter Ridsdale following an immense amount of flak after rvelations regards his pay and bonuses and complete farces handling Hasselbaink and Fowler wanted to make amends and himself look good. So he jumped the gun by announcing Bent's signing 2 days ago before it was a done deal without any medical taking place or contracts being signed.

Peter Ridsdale has been in the game long enough to know that was an incredibly foolish - nay idiotic - thing to do and there was a chance it would bite him on the bum and that's how it appears to have turned out.

I always thought that with City going public like that, it gave Bent's agent and the player a last chance to get another deal fixed up and that;'s how it proved. It has transpired today that Marcus Bent failed to arrive in South Wales and, instead, has arranged a deal with Birmingham City instead.

Charlton manager Alan Pardew hinted yesterday that other clubs were sniffing after Bent so the warning signs were there while Peter Ridsdale entertained the media with talk of Bent being the missing link in the City side.

Ridsdale and Jones set themselves up for the fall, Ridsdale in particular is fast losing credibility with his public comments and he's brought it himself. Prat!

I wonder who will squirm the most - Peter Ridsdale when he has to explain away this latest piece of self-inflicted chaos or Cardiff City supporters having to listen to another set of excuses.