Tuesday Blue

Not only has Benny added TheBlues.ie Goal of the Month for May to his Man of the Match win from Friday night, but he is the standout choice for this week’s Tuesday Blue too.

The Portuguese with the Lancashire accent might well have saved Waterford’s season with a crucial late equaliser in Drogheda. When Will Johnson’s long throw was cleared to the full back ten yards outside the box, Benny connected beautifully to arc the ball into the top corner and claim a vital point for the Blues - as much for psychological reasons as mathematical.

Born in Portugal with the full name Bernardo Peixoto Couto, he moved to England as a child and came up through Oldham Athletic’s academy. The Latics converted him from an attacker to a left back and burst into their League Two team as an 18-year-old. He signed a three-year contract in October 2021 and, by January 2022, he was hot property in the transfer window with a Premier League club (rumoured to be Leeds United or Wolverhampton Wanderers) reported to have had a bid of up to a million pounds turned down for the youngster.

 

 

After 36 total appearances for Oldham and a couple of loan spells, he joined Ashton United in the Northern Premier League for a season before moving to Cork City last year. Couto started City’s first twelve games of the season, but an ankle ligament injury ruled him out for the next twelve. He never quite reclaimed his place in the starting eleven as Cork slumped to relegation.

Then, on the 5th of December, Benny was announced as Jon Daly’s third signing for Waterford - seemingly on the back of a strong recommendation from Tim Clancy. He has started sixteen of the Blues’ nineteen league games to date and his best performances have come in recent weeks. His well-delivered corner kick assisted Kevin Long’s headed goal to give us the lead against Derry City at the RSC and his viciously-whipped low cross forced the own goal that levelled matters against Shelbourne in Tolka Park.

Of course, his most memorable and significant contribution so far came with just four minutes left on the clock last Friday night. Manager Graham Coughlan needs to get the very best out of the players at his disposal to keep the slim hopes of survival alive and he has succeeded in getting more from the young defender, who only turns 23 in September, especially in an attacking sense.

Benny’s strike was easily the moment of the week so he is this week’s Tuesday Blue to add to all the other deserved accolades for a goal that will live long in the memory.