Bent may not have been a fans' favourite in N17, but it hasn't taken long for the Sunderland faithful to take him to their hearts
At Ipswich, he netted 15+ goals for three consecutive seasons and he followed it up with 37 goals in 77 games after Charlton paid £2.5m for his services, plus eight in 12 for England U21s.
Bent quickly built a reputation as a capable Premier League goalscorer in southeast London, although his goals were not enough to prevent the Addicks from being relegated to the Championship at the end of the 2006/07 season.
Despite his impressive record, fans and press alike took part in a bout of collective eyebrow-raising when Spurs broke their transfer record to pay Charlton £16.5m for Bent in July 2007.
And those eyebrows lifted sky-high when the season started and the former Ipswich Town youth player struggled to get a game ahead of established attacking trio Dimitar Berbatov, Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe.
When he did get an opportunity, Bent was often wasteful, finishing 2007/08 with just six goals. But it was the first failure in front of goal in his career.
The following season was a mixed one, with Bent finishing Spurs' top goalscorer despite losing his place in the second half of the season to the returning Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe. The notable low point came when Harry Redknapp criticized Bent for missing a guilt-edge chance against Portsmouth, claiming his wife would have scored it.
It came as no surprise to see Bent leave White Hart lane in 2009, and Sunderland paid £12 million, potentially rising to £16 million to take him to the North East.
The striker soon rediscovered his confidence and goal-scoring touch, and by the midway point of his first season at the Stadium of Light, Bent had already matched his Premier League goal tally of the previous season.