The escalation of Ryan Bennett’s career over the past seasons has gone from end to end.
From moments of madness such as his heated twitter exchange with Norwich supporters after their defeat at Arsenal, to scoring the 94th minute against promotion chasing Bristol City.
Back of the line
Joining Wolves Ryan Bennett was seen by many as a squad rotation player with bigger names expected to come in.
The timing of Bennett’s transfer only heighted theories that he was already an unneeded player due to the fact he arrived a day after his old manager, Paul Lambert, was sacked.
By the end of the transfer window the theories looked to become reality with Bennett unable to make the bench and behind many first team players such as Miranda, Batth and even the youngest Deslandes.
However, despite this setback Bennett got his chance through an injured Wily Boly and a suspended Coady, allowing him to get his first league start against Burton where he put on a solid showing at the back.
Time to shine
Following a poor performance at Wolves loss to QPR, Nuno made changes to the team, allowing Bennett to have a his first big chance starting at Norwich, his former employees, where he put in a brilliant performance getting an assist for the second goal scored by Bonatini.
Now the fans could see what Bennett could really bring into the team, a calmness at the back and a reassurance to the fans after a couple of performances where the backline looked unnerved without the presence of Wily Boly.
Consequently, Bennett had a run in the team where he consistently performed, resulting in a run of only two goals being conceded in nine starts and seven clean sheets.
Nuno clearly acknowledged these performances by keeping Bennett in the team throughout the majority of December until the famous Bristol City game.
That night in Bristol…
Club captain Batth was given a chance in a top of the table clash however, it took a sour turn within 14 minutes when he received a controversial red card, allowing Bennett to come on in an attempt to weather the storm.
This resulted in a resilient performance against aggressive waves of attacks which only resulted in one goal despite being down to 10 men for about 80 minutes.
Resilience then turned into a renaissance as Bennett became the unlikely hero of the night, scoring a last minute header to win the game at Ashton Gate and firmly cementing his place in the team for the foreseeable future.
Part of the furniture
As the Premier League season is now firmly underway Bennett has still found a consistent place in the team despite further new signings to bolster the defence such as Dendoncker, a Belgium international.
From pre-season fixtures it seemed Saiss would slot into Bennett’s position alongside Boly and Coady. However, since his second half introduction in Wolves 3-2 victory to VillaReal, Bennett has been back to his usual best.
Bennett is using his previous Premier League experience to help keep a strong backline and getting Wolves out of many precarious situations.
By helping to set the tone in the defence in the opening games without getting overrun against some of the best attackers in the world, Ryan Bennett truly shows he can easily compete for a place in the Wolves’ team, becoming more of a guaranteed starter rather than a rotation player.
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