Has 20-year-old Everton talent Beni Baningime gone backwards this season?

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Last season represented few positives for Everton. However, one which could be considered a success was the emergence of talented midfielder Beni Baningime.

The bullish midfielder came into the squad under the temporary guidance of his under-23 boss David Unsworth. However, he stuck around under Sam Allardyce and his future at Everton was looking decidedly bright.

The 20-year-old certainly had sections of support in the Everton fanbase. It is easy to see why. A tough tackling no nonsense youngster with an appetite for the game was always going to make fans happy.

He also won over Everton. He was rewarded with a new contract in the summer. He signed a new four-year deal keeping him at the club until 2022 in May.

But his trajectory has been severely dented this season.

Baningime has not had a chance to feature in the Everton first-team at all this season because of injury trouble. The youngster suffered a severe ankle sprain during the pre-season visit to Austria. He returned to training at the end of last month but is some way off first-team action.

With Everton not in Europe and also out of the League Cup, the midfielder has lost two major opportunities to get first-team football. With competition for places tougher now Andre Gomes has arrived from Barcelona and James Mccarthy recovering faster than expected from his broken leg, the 20-year-old looks set for a spell back in the under-23s.

That will not necessarily be a bad thing. However, it is certainly a step back from where he was this time last year.