Cats deal for Bent in danger of collapse.

Byline: Luke Edwards 

DARREN Bent's move to Sunderland could be on the verge of collapse after the striker failed to have a medical on Wearside yesterday in the wake of late bids from Aston Villa and Hull City.

Although club sources have insisted Bent was never due to have his pre-signing hospital checks as they are still negotiating with Tottenham over the size of his fee, the player claimed via his personal blog on internet social network Twitter on Tuesday evening that he was travelling to Wearside for just that purpose.

The Journal understands that the Black Cats are far from happy with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy's handling of the transfer and feel he is trying to extract more money from them.

Sunderland thought they had agreed a club-record fee of pounds 12m, with another pounds 2m attached to various clauses referring to appearances and goals scored, but they are being kept in the dark by the Spurs hierarchy, who appear to be trying to start a bidding war.

Talks were said to be continuing at boardroom level last night in an attempt to seal the 25-year-old's eagerly-awaited switch to the Stadium of Light, but the delay could prove to be the least of Sunderland's worries.

Bent is not in the North East and is believed to have had contact with both Hull and Villa in the last 24 hours to find out what sort of financial package they are offering.

Should the Bent deal collapse, it will be a major blow to manager Steve Bruce and, psychologically, it could be devastating in terms of completing his ambitious squad strengthening project.

Sunderland have already suffered one public snub this summer when Peter Crouch refused to move to the North East last week - even though they had agreed a fee with Portsmouth - and another would raise fresh doubts about the club's ability to attract big name players. Crouch instead elected to sign for Spurs this week, which was expected to lead to Bent's arrival at Sunderland. That deal now hangs in the balance as a result of Villa and Hull's late attempt to hijack the transfer. Sunderland's main rival would appear to be Villa. Martin O'Neill can offer European football in the Europa League next season, as well as a potential challenge for a Champions League place. However, given the fact Sunderland were willing to pay Crouch pounds 80,000 a week, it is thought they are able to offer better terms than Villa, which may yet swing things back in their favour. To further add to the confusion regarding Bent's situation, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp yesterday admitted he was in the dark as far as the forward's destination was concerned. "I have no idea," he said after watching his side beat West Ham 1-0 in the Asia Cup in China. "I haven't spoke to the chairman for two days so I don't know where we are with that deal with Sunderland .

"When we came away it was very close but I have not heard any more." There was more bad news on the transfer front for Sunderland yesterday from France, where Bordeaux manager Laurent Blanc has ridiculed the Wearsiders' attempt to sign Marouane Chamakh. The Moroccan striker, a confirmed target for Bruce, has said he is willing to sign for Sunderland, but his manager does not think they are a big enough club to lure him to the Premier League and he is actively trying to derail the deal. The former Manchester United defender said: "I am going to do everything to make sure he does not go to just any club. With him, things are clear. After the season he's had, if he has to go, it will be to a big club. That's why I am standing in the way of a departure to Sunderland. "I am not going to change what said to him at the start of the year. If an offer comes from a big club, I will not stand in the way. The door is half-open." Meanwhile, Bruce will at least be able to welcome two new arrivals on to the training pitch as England Under-21 international striker Fraizer Campbell and Albanian midfielder Lorik Cana will take part in their first Sunderland work-out this morning.