8 Biggest Sunderland Rumours That Never Happened

4. Darren Bent Left After Dating Steve Bruce's Daughter

Darren Bent's departure from Sunderland is comfortably the most critical moment of the 2010s for the club. Strikers had come and gone, but nobody had truly replaced Kevin Phillips as a consistent Premier League goalscorer until Bent came along and tore up the usual script that Sunderland strikers follow.

He was utterly incredible during that season, a fact that was heartbreakingly buried following his sideways step to Villa, but what could've gone so horrendously wrong? Why would Bent be so desperate to get out of Sunderland? It was known that Bent had started dating then-manager Steve Bruce's daughter Amy, and alleged that the Black Cat's boss was unhappy with the situation. It was never revealed whether a bust-up caused Bent to become unsettled.