Marco Silva named Beni Baningime on the bench in Saturday’s 2-0 win over West Ham. And while the 21-year-old was an unused substitute, his inclusion is significant. As per Transfermarkt, the last time Baningime made Everton’s matchday squad was against Southampton on May 5, 2018.
The uncapped DR Congo midfielder spent the first half of 2018/19 in the u23s and the second half on loan at Wigan Athletic. He featured just once at Wigan, however, and returned to Goodison Park with his development hampered and stock lowered. He was tipped to leave permanently ahead of the new season too.
Reserve team manager David Unsworth revealed Everton had to break Baningime and piece him back together over the summer, and it appears their hard work has paid dividends. The 21-year-old has made five Premier League 2 appearances this season while turning out in the EFL Trophy.
He benefitted from Fabian Delph and Jean-Philippe Gbamin being absent on Saturday, but Silva has overlooked Baningime under similar circumstances in the past. Whether he makes the squad against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday remains to be seen, but the midfielder can take a lot of positives from his West Ham inclusion.