Victim of paedophile coach Barry Bennell tells High Court he created 'an environment a young person was attracted to', at his home and his world 'revolved around him'
- The man told the judge he stayed at Bennell's 'football orientated' home as a boy
- He is one of eight men who made damages claims against Manchester City
- They claim Bennell was a City scout when he abused them but club disputes that
- Former coach Barry Bennell is serving a jail term for child sex crimes conviction
Paedophile former coach Barry Bennell created an attractive environment for young people, one of his victims has told the High Court.
The man told a judge he had stayed at Bennell’s 'football-orientated' home as a boy.
He told Mr Justice Johnson that football had been his world, and his world had revolved around the coach, who is now serving a jail term after being convicted of child sex crimes.
The man was giving evidence at a High Court trial being overseen by Mr Justice Johnson in London.
He is one of eight men, now in their 40s and 50s, who have made damages claims against Manchester City.
Eight men, now in their 40s and 50s, have made damages claims against Manchester City and say Bennell (pictured) abused them when they were playing football in north-west England more than 30 years ago
The men say Bennell, now 67, abused them when they were playing schoolboy football in the North West of England more than 30 years ago.
They claim that Bennell was a City scout when he abused them.
City bosses dispute that claim.
The man, who, the judge has ruled, cannot be named in media reports, said he first met Bennell when he was around 11 or 12.
'He approached me and said he was a Manchester City scout,' the man told Mr Justice Johnson.
'He gave me a calling card.'
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The man told Mr Justice Johnson that football had been his world, and his world had revolved around the coach, who is now serving a jail term after being convicted of child sex crimes. Pictured: Manchester City's Etihad Stadium
The man said he played for a team coached by Bennell, trained with him at City’s training ground, and went to watch City games with him.
He also said he stayed at Bennell’s home.
'It was something I wanted to do,' he told the judge.
'It was an environment a young person was attracted to.
'Everything was football-orientated.
'Football was my world and revolved around him at the time.'
The man added: 'I wanted to be a footballer - that is what I was convinced I was going to be.'
He said Bennell’s abuse had scarred him and he had 'lost his love' for football.
He told the judge: 'I see the abuse as the crossroads and the crux of the matter.'
Barry Bennell (above), a former Crewe Alexandra coach, is serving a 34-year prison sentence after being convicted of sexual offences against boys on five separate occasions
Mr Justice Johnson has heard that the eight men were sexually and emotionally abused by Bennell between 1979 and 1985 and are claiming damages after suffering psychiatric injuries.
Six are also claiming damages for loss of potential football earnings.
Manchester City FC say Bennell was a local scout in the mid-1970s but was not a scout between 1979 and 1985.
The judge has been told that Bennell, a former Crewe Alexandra coach, is serving a 34-year prison sentence after being convicted of sexual offences against boys on five separate occasions - four in the UK and one in the US - and is being held at HMP Littlehey, near Huntingdon, in Cambridgeshire.
The case continues.
Adults can contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 while children can call Childline on 0800 1111.
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