Bristol City extend contract of talented midfielder as young striker is loaned out

Bristol City have extended the contract of their talented midfielder Ayman Benarous who will remain at the club until the end of the 2024/25 season.

The 19-year-old was previously a ball boy at the club and came through the academy at the SGS College, making a smooth transition into the first-team picture.

Benarous follows in the footsteps of the likes of Cameron Pring and Alex Scott, who have all signed new contracts this season and become a part of the youthful revolution under Nigel Pearson.

"I have worked hard and I'm glad about where I have come from and where I am going but there's still a while to go until I'm a successful Bristol City player,” said Benarous to Robins TV.

“Coming up as a Bristol City boy, playing for the club is something I always dreamt of.

“I would like to thank the manager for putting his trust in me and the other youngsters here as well, hopefully we can pick some results up on the pitch and climb the table.”

The midfielder has had a breakthrough season, scoring a hat-trick for the under-23’s against Watford back in October which attracted the attention of the first-team coaches.

In the same week, he made his Championship debut, coming on as a substitute at Ashton Gate in the win over Barnsley.

Benarous then went on to start his first match, featuring in the 1-1 draw with Blackburn Rovers in November and has not looked back since.

The Bristolian midfielder has gone on to make seven league appearances, starting five of them with Pearson showing a tremendous amount of faith in homegrown talent.

Also announced on Tuesday was the departure of Louis Britton, who will link up with Waterford FC, who play in the second division of Irish football.

Britton had been on trial with League of Ireand outfit Derry City but instead he has joined a team hoping to return to the top flight of Irish football.

The loan deal runs until June which coincides with when his contract at City expires, so depending on how he fares in Ireland, the club may allow him to go permanently.

In a short tweet after making the move to Waterford, Britton tweeted: “Looking forward to the next few months ahead.”

The 20-year-old started his career AEK Boco of the Western Football League before making his way to Bath City’s academy team. A few spells at Cadbury Heath, Brislington and Mangotsfield United came before he was signed up by Bristol in April 2019.

A few loan spells to Yate Town and former club Bath followed, as well as playing under former Robins boss Gary Johnson at Torquay but he was unable to make his mark.

Britton has made one senior appearance for Bristol City, netting in the 4-1 defeat against Brentford towards the end of last eason.