"The best option" - Verdict given on potential Bristol City, Ayman Benarous scenario | OneFootball

Benarous has endured a torrid time with injuries in the West Country

Highlights

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

As is the case with any club, supporters are always clamouring for academy graduates to blossom into the first-team picture over time.

Ayman Benarous looked to be the next cab off the rank in this regard when it comes to Bristol City having 'one of their own' in the side after being handed his first-team debut by former boss Nigel Pearson two seasons ago.

However, Benarous still remains an enigma to the Ashton Gate faithful through a period of rotten luck, after a string of consistent serious injuries which have set the 20-year-old back when it comes to his overall development, with Liam Manning unable to call upon his services so far.

Bristol City fan pundit offers potential Ayman Benarous scenario ahead of next season

Similarly to a majority of Robins supporters, Football League World's Bristol City fan pundit, Tom Sandy, appreciates the quality which Benarous initially showcased, but admits that a loan move in the summer could be the best possible outcome for all parties at this moment in time.

"Ayman Benarous is a player who I've always had an admiration for," Sandy began. "He came through the academy, broke into the squad and was a real bright spark in a team which lacked a little bit of that when he first came into the side.

"Obviously, he's had a lot of injuries in the last couple of years which have really hindered him. He's only made 16 appearances for the club and four of those were in the FA Youth Cup," he stated. "But, you could see from those games and from the fact he hasn't been loaned out since, is that he has talent and that he's someone who could break into this team.

"With the arrival of players like Josh Stokes, potentially Scott Twine again and us already having a surplus of wide players such as Mark Sykes, Sam Bell and Anis Mehmeti, there's a lot of competition for one position.

"I feel like loaning him could be the best option for his career. He's pretty much had two years out with these injuries, and he'll probably find it difficult to implement himself into the squad," Sandy continued.

"However, if it was up to me, I would keep him," he declared. "On the left-hand side, we have players who can hit the byline and players who can cut inside. There are different options with what we want to do.

"On the right-hand side, our options are Harry Cornick, Mark Sykes, Sam Bell, I would say. Those are all players who will use their pace to reach the byline and get a cross in, which is good, but it keeps us one-dimensional on that side.

"Benarous isn't that kind of player," our fan pundit added. "He's a left-footed right-winger. He's someone who can ask the question of a defender when all game, they've faced someone who wants to go down the line. He'll be the player to hit the byline or cut inside, he'll make a defence think.

"That's the sort of player you need off the bench when trying to make an impact in the game. He's the sort of player I'd be wanting to bring on.

"He's young, he's been around the squad for a long time. He'll probably know the system by now, having been on the training ground doing rehab."

Liam Manning stance will aid Benarous' first team chances

Much like our fan pundit, Manning is someone who is also full of admiration for Benarous, whose season came to an end in April after suffering another hamstring issue after attempting to recover from successive long-term ACL injuries.

Manning stated: “I find it incredible how level he stays; he’s an extremely intelligent, mature lad and given what he’s had in the last couple of years and how he copes with it, I can’t commend him enough with how consistent his attitude is, and his emotions in terms of some people would be really struggling - he obviously hates the fact he’s injured - but he channels it into work, so I commend him for that.

“He’s now got a couple of months where it’s about getting ready for day one of pre-season and making sure the programme he has in the off-season allows him to be in the best shape possible.”

It's understandable that some will hold the viewpoint that a loan move to potentially a League One side will benefit the former England U17 international in the short-term, but the former Oxford and MK Dons boss is looking to change the culture at Ashton Gate, which could see Benarous fast-tracked back into first-team action.

Without playing a single minute, his second boss in BS3 has already seen his resilience at first sight, and now the hope is that the 20-year-old can prove his ability in the second tier once again with an injury-free campaign.

The last Championship match he featured in was a 5-0 victory over Hull City on April 30th 2022, and his return could come against the same opponents at the MKM Stadium on August 10th.