RICHIE Wellens has accepted he cannot compete with Kyle Bennett’s current wage packet at Bristol Rovers, but has expressed his interest in re-visiting the midfielder towards the end of the summer transfer window.

Bennett, 28, joined Town from Rovers on a loan deal lasting until the end of the season on deadline day in January.

Four goals in his 15 appearances in red were complemented by his ability to break up play in midfield and spark attacking phases of play.

Bennett himself admitted after Town’s 2-1 defeat against Crewe in April that a long-term stay at SN1 would be of interest to him.

But Wellens admits successfully negotiating a permanent deal with Bristol Rovers won’t be easy.

“Kyle (Bennett) is a difficult one,” admitted Wellens.

“His contract at Bristol Rovers is very good, it’s something that we can’t compete with.

“One thing we don’t want to do is sign Kyle as soon as possible, because then we would have to be paying him through the summer – that’s not a position we can afford to be in.

“Kyle will be a player we will target towards the back end of the window. I’m totally comfortable waiting for him.

“He knows the group and he wouldn’t have to settle in. With some new signings, you want them in as quickly as possible so they can get to know the players and staff.

“With Kyle, we know that isn’t the case. He knows the way we want to play.

“If Bristol are willing to do something, it will be an easy signing.”

Outgoings from the list of players in contract with Town are unlikely to be completed sooner rather than later, with the Town boss keen to channel his focus on recruitment at this moment in time.

The 39-year-old has already stated that he has no plans to include Jermaine McGlashan in Town’s squad next season, while regular first-team absentees since Wellens took charge that remain in contract include Ellis Iandolo.

Wellens added: “When I joined, 50 per cent of the squad were David Flitcroft’s players and the other 50 per cent were Phil Brown’s.

“Players were still under contract from former managers – that isn’t their (former managers) fault. They obviously wanted to stamp their footprint on the team.

“But, for me, Flitcroft and Brown are two different styles of managers. I felt it was a good opportunity to have a clear-out and maybe do two transfer windows in one.”