Sideways Sammy

Ten games in and it still feels too early to judge what Luis Binks is and isn’t capable of. Brought in around a week before the opening game of the season, Binks arrived too late to be part of the starting line-up in the early weeks of the campaign, with the big money signing of Liam Kitching as a more experienced left-footed centre-back blocking his opportunities once he had time to adapt. Appearances have come here and there for Binks and while he’s never looked out of place in the starting XI, he has yet to really be tested in a Coventry City shirt.

What can be said about Luis Binks thus far is that he wants to be a ball-player from centre-back. He has occasionally played some nice passes out from the back and even strode forwards with the ball a few times reasonably well; however, that has also led to him giving possession away when there has been an easier pass available to him. Defensively, Binks has mostly looked a pretty competent defender but has rarely been put under pressure by opponents. There have been a few moments where he has looked a little nervy and flaky in the challenge – most notably, as part of a pretty lame attempt to stop Queens Park Rangers’, Sinclair Armstrong, bustling past him for a consolation goal at Loftus Road in September – but as someone who hasn’t had the opportunity to get a run of starts, a level of tentativeness is understandable.

The move to a back four has further limited what had already looked to be a small window of opportunity for Luis Binks to establish himself as first-choice at Coventry City. There is promise there with Binks, but he may require a run in the side that simply cannot be guaranteed with Liam Kitching, both a bigger investment, and a more experienced player ahead of him in the queue at left-sided centre-back, and Bobby Thomas performing well on the right. With Kyle McFadzean unlikely to play much as part of a back four and Joel Latibeaudiere being deployed at right-back and central midfield more recently, Luis Binks is the only true cover that the Sky Blues currently have at centre-back. It is up to Binks to bide his time for further opportunities over the remainder of the season and do a little more than he has done already if he wants to nail down a place at Coventry City and earn a longer stay at the club.