Sideways Sammy

Signed on a permanent deal over the summer following a loan spell, there is promise with Luis Binks but a lack of experience is clearly his biggest issue. After a stop-start first season with the club, Binks has earned greater trust this time around to start games more consistently, allowing his quality to start to shine through. There remains a naivety to his game that can only be improved with further game-time, the task for Binks is to have those learning experiences while playing at a level high enough to keep his place in the side.

Luis Binks’ greatest strength is his passing ability from centre-back, which provides the team an important outlet in possession to open up the play from deep. Binks has become more disciplined in his use of the ball during his time at the club, picking his moments to play long, cross-field passes, rather than trying to do so almost all the time. Defensively, Binks can be strong in the challenge but his positioning can be suspect, having been caught out on a few occasions letting forwards make runs off the back of him, which is an issue without a pacey defensive partner to bail him out. While Binks has increased in physicality from over a year of Championship football, it is his concentration levels now that need to improve.

Luis Binks is not that far away from being a good centre-back at Championship level, but there are a fair few things for him to work on to get to that level. Having been in a battle with Liam Kitching for first-choice left-sided centre-back since the start of last season, Binks has made an important step in asserting himself as the most trustworthy of the two players. With his name on the team-sheet now established, it is up to Binks to take up the opportunity to benefit from a settled run in the side that he has yet to enjoy during his time at the club.