JIMMY Bell has hailed new signing Charlie Barnett as a player who could make a real difference to Accrington Stanley’s season after the midfielder turned down Falkirk to pen a one-year deal at the Crown Ground.

Barnett fell out of favour at League One Tranmere last season, having previously been a regular, but Stanley are confident of getting the best out of the 21-year-old and jumped at the chance to sign him - even though they had already ended their summer search for midfielders and operate on a tight budget.

The former Liverpool youth team star had been on trial at Falkirk but linked up with Stanley last week, playing in two friendly matches, before agreeing to sign.

“We weren’t looking for a central midfielder to tell the truth because we’ve got Luke Joyce, Andy Procter, Ray Putterill and Jimmy Ryan,” said assistant manager Bell.

“But the opportunity came up to bring him in on trial. We were massively impressed and offered him a deal.

“The deal we offered was within our budget, so we weren’t sure whether it would be enough.

“Falkirk offered him a lot more money, although I’m not sure if it was concrete.

“But Charlie has enjoyed it here and decided he wanted to sign.

“He is a player who can take us a step on. He’s a central midfielder who can play in the holding role or a bit further forward.

"He’s very good at ball retention. He ticks all the boxes.”