Elliott Bennett came to Norwich fans' attention in January 2011
when City bid £1m for him in the january transfer window
Brighton resisted but Norwich finally got their man with a £1.5m
signing on 14th June 2011.
Bennett joined Wolverhampton Wanderers aged nine having been
spotted playing in a local five-a-side tournament. He captained
the club's under-12 team that travelled to Japan in 2001 and won
the U12 World Cup, where he also picked up the Player of the Tournament
award. Bennett was also a talented 200m sprinter and represented
Shropshire at the English School Athletics Championships.
After a spell as a scholar with Wolves, he signed professional
forms with them in March 2007. However he never made a league
appearance for Wolves though, despite being picked for the first
team squad several times, but did appear twice for them in the
League Cup.
After spending time at loan at both Crewe and Bury, Bennett signed
a three year contract with Brighton & Hove Albion on 20th
August 2009.
Bennett enjoyed a successful season in 2010-11, playing a significant
role in Brighton's promotion to the Championship. Scoring 8 goals,
and assisting over 20, Bennett gained a place in the PFA League
One Team of the Year
Bennett made his Norwich debut as a 75th minute substitute in
the opening day of the season clash at Wigan (13th August 2011)
which Norwich drew 1-1. His first start came the following week
(21st August) in the 1-1 home draw with Stoke. He scored his first
Norwich goal in the 2-1 win at Spurs on Easter Monday 2012.
Bennett finished the season with 36 appearances as Norwich finished
12th in the Premier League