 He completed a transfer to Charlton Athletic on 1 June 2005 , which was worth an initial fee of £ 2 @.@ 5 million , but would have risen to £ 3 million if he made an agreed number of appearances for Charlton and for England . After the move , he said : " I am confident that Charlton will play an important role to play in the Premiership next season . This is a very strong team and I am glad that I will be a part of it . " On the opening day of the 2005 – 06 FA Premier League season , Bent scored two goals on his Charlton debut against Sunderland , and was named the Premier League player of the month for August . He scored in his first four games for the club , one of only six players to perform this feat in the Premier League . Bent was the highest scoring Englishman in the Premier League in the 2005 – 06 season , with 18 goals ( 22 overall ) , which made him third highest scorer and was given Charlton 's Player of the Year award . He signed an extension to his contract at Charlton in July , which contracted him until June 2010 . Bent finished the 2006 – 07 season with 13 goals in the Premier League , again finishing as Charlton 's top goalscorer , but was unable to prevent them from being relegated into the Championship after seven successive seasons of Premier League football . Charlton accepted a bid from West Ham United for him in June 2007 , but Bent was not interested in a move to Upton Park . 
